Bloodlust
by HarborRat
Summary: A Roman assassin heads to China for a new life, but old habits die hard. Amoungst the dynasty warriors, a foreigner struggles to become an honorable warrior and help unite China under Liu Bei's rule. Rated for language and mature situations
1. A Lone Roman

Disclaimer: I don't claim to own these characters other then Calpurnia  
who is a creation loosely based on the CAW NuWa girl from DW4. (the girl does have big hips you know..)

AN: The plot pacing of this story is meant to mimic the game. In the beginning everything is more free, there are less requirements to fulfill and you are less involved in the actually drama of the three kingdoms. People are easy to beat and everything is more relaxed. As the game progresses, you build your character and the battles are won by strategy and not force. This story was planned out in this manner and was created with an 'alternative history' scenario in mind. The characters will develop and grow along with the story which is prevalent in all my writing.

This story is not kind to Zhuge Liang, so you've been warned.

I'd list pairings, but honestly that will give away alot of the story. If you're open minded, well that shouldn't bother you.

AN: 11/07/04

If you hate Ocs, well then you'll hate this fic. She was created to introduce the cultural conflict and possible historical alterations and also to allow these charcters to live a bit. As the story had progressed I have taken into consideration any reviews I have recieved so alot of what happens to her in later chapters is a direct influence of that. My readers seem to like her and want her to be happy, sorry if that makes people light the Mary-Sue torch. Flame me if you want, they only make me laugh.

Chapter I

A Lone Roman

Calpurnia Quirinuis rode alone down the well traveled trade

road east. She was clad in male attire, although her long black

braided roman hair defeated her attempt at disguise. She had little as

far as belongings: Her wool cloak, the clothes on her back, a well

sharpened short sword and the gray Arabian colt she rode.

The traders that had been irritating her for the past two

hundred miles were well behind her and she took comfort in the

solitude. It gave her ample time to think, and she certainly needed to

think. Six months ago she had been one of the Roman Empire's highly

prized assassins but now her life was in shambles, and she just turned

sixteen.

Seven months had passed since Octavian Galleus, her

commanding officer, issued her the orders from the emperor himself. She

was to kill a senator, something she didn't even think twice about.

Politicians died often, rarely due to natural causes; not much had

changed since the days of Julius Caesar. However a simple throat

slitting in a small brothel turned into something she would have never

anticipated: her own betrayal.

As soon as the deed was done, Galleus and his Centurions

rushed in to arrest her. It was a grand ploy, she had to admit, they

would blame the senator's murder on her but another man would pay the

price for allegedly ordering her to do it-General Liutius Hadrianius.

They would both die for the great injustice, a convenient way to

eliminate the people's hero and the young assassin that already had took

much blood on her hands. They underestimated her, and she eliminated

them for it. She ran, knowing that men would be sent to hunt her down,

and now she was here pondering her future. There had to be a war

somewhere that needed someone like herself.

The scenery was changing drastically. Ares, her loyal colt,

flickered his ears at the sound of voices ahead. She urged him on,

worse case scenario she would have to spill some blood. The more she

thought about it the more she hoped they would be hostile; it would be a

welcome relief from the weeks of boredom riding this dusty road.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Why are we all the way out here Ping?" The small unhappy private

yawned. "There aren't any enemies that I know of that we need to

protect Wei from, yet."

"That's why you're a private and Cao Cao is the general."

Ping answered

"Hey, someone's coming!" Chang stood up and watched the

foreigner approach.

"Does that look like a girl to you?"

"Ping, I haven't had a woman in a while, but that sure looks

like one."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Calpurnia approached slowly, surveying the situation. Two

sentries, no bows. It was all she needed to know. The small Chinese

men were shouting at her, obviously asking sentry related questions.

She made out a bit of it, thanks to the traders she had spent time with.

"What....want..." The younger man asked. He repeated his

question but she didn't make out any more of it then she did the first

time. Oh well.

Clearing her throat she tried her best to not butcher the

gibberish language she had learned. "Take to lord."

The two men were refusing her simple mangled request and she

sighed. Sliding off her steed she hit the ground and unsheathed her

sword. With a quick move she had both men on the ground writhing in

pain from multiple wounds to the abdomen.

"Well, Ares, shall we see if we can find someone else a bit

more compatible with our language?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Mmm..."

"Cousin, is this what you anticipated coming down the road?"

Xiahou Dun asked curiously as he leaned over the pommel of his saddle.

"Not quite, but nonetheless interesting." Cao Cao smiled

with a certain bit of curiosity.

"Would you like me to bring her to you?" Dun asked knowing

the answer. His cousin had a definite taste for the younger crowd and

this girl looked to be about the right age to fuel his desire.

"Yes, yes indeed."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Calpurnia was annoyed with the lack of contact with anyone.

Sentries meant someone had to be near, but where were they? She asked

Ares for a slow trot and as she turned the corner she spotted the

welcoming committee.

Xiahou Dun galloped ahead of his men and came to a sliding

halt in front of the fair skinned foreign girl. Calpurnia eyed him and

tried to make sense of the huge sentence he spit out at her. She made

out the words 'like', 'see', 'here' and 'lord' and considering the

obvious importance of this man she decided to take her chances.

"To lord?" She asked and saw Dun nod in amused recognition.

Then she pressed on. "Warrior." She pointed to her self. "Need...." She

searched for something related to employment in her new Chinese

vocabulary but came up with none. "Need lord." She watched Dun nod and

wave her on, it must have worked.


	2. In Wei Country

Chapter II

Wei Officers

Two years later.

"These damn yellow turbans are going to make a move aren't they? Zhang Jiao must be the fool then." Cao Cao smiled fiendishly.  
"War has finally come, cousin." Xiahou Dun smiled; he was ready to fight as well.  
"Opportunity has come, Dun." Cao Cao turned towards the map on the wall of his study. "An opportunity to place Wei in power."   
"And not to mention expand our territory. Maybe into the Wu lands?" Xiahou Yuan tapped his finger on the map and laughed. "War is promising isn't it?"   
A light knock come on the door. The men turned anticipating the new arrival. Cao Cao boomed, "Come in."  
"My lords." Calpurnia bowed her head to the gentleman. "The Yellow turbans are revolting and the emperor has called for assistance." She watched the men light up with enthusiasm. She smiled herself, it was a long time she had waited.  
"Come Cal, sit." Dun patted the cushion beside him. He had immediately taken the girl under his wing two years ago and he was proud of her accomplishments. Despite ceaseless teasing from his cousin and brother, he found her a teacher and made sure she learned their language and ways. She had been a furious fighter from the beginning and once he put her on the training grounds with his men, he noticed a change in her. She had arrived with an aurora of despair around her, but once she beat up on his men a little and she received the respect she knew she deserved, she was a joy to be around. He couldn't help but glance at his cousin who hadn't been able to keep his hands off her long. Surprisingly she was fine with his attentions and desires. Once he dared ask her why she allowed Cao Cao to take her to his bed. "Dun, in my experience it is best to cater to the highest ranking individual's desires." And that was it.  
"Thank you." She sat next to him and took the wine he offered. She smiled warmly, it had make her day when Cao Cao had asked her to be the one to ride to the emperor's palace and now things were looking very good. Until she caught Cao Cao's lecherous look. Of course he would want to celebrate.  
Once the meeting was dismissed Calpurnia felt his eyes call her over and she heard his soft but lusty whisper in her ear, "Please find your way to my quarters after supper." That was it. It was all he needed to say.

  
She left the study and ran into Zhen Ji, who gave her a disdainful look. Calpurnia never took to the icy woman at all, which suited her fine. The Wei beauty was everything she was not, and the two women were more then aware of their lack of common interests. However, as of late, Ji had been acting more irritated by Cal's participation in Wei affairs.   
"You have returned." Zhen Ji forced a smile at the young Roman girl.  
"Obviously." Cal smiled and continued down the hall to meet with the waiting Xiahou Dun who was engrossed in conversation with Cao Ren.  
"Well we narrowly miss another catfight I see." Ren took his helmet off and scratched his head.   
Cal snorted, "I hope she does challenge me someday, I'll take that flute and shove it up her…"  
Dun covered her mouth before she could spit out the words. "Easy."  
Ren laughed. "Still the fireball." Well anyhow I'm starved, let's eat."  
"We'll be along shortly. I'd like to stop by the armory first and see if we can't replace this toothpick she's got."  
Ren took a look at the short sword his cousin was referring to, "Yes that pathetic thing. What weaklings these _Romans_ must be if that is their standard issue."

"Dun, what is all this?" Calpurnia looked around the room at all the weapons stockpiled.   
"Armory." He was looking for something, something in particular.  
"But these weapons are all….fantastic." She ran her hands over several blades.  
"Well when we come across something better, we equip it and toss the old one here. Eventually they'll come in handy. Ah here it is---the Celestial Blade."  
His eyes lit up, the thin sword with the ornate hilt was incredible. "And that one? You tossed that aside?"  
"No…I guess we were just waiting on someone to wield it." He sheathed the rapier and tossed it to his friend. "Enjoy. You've earned it."  
"Does this mean I can dump all those arrows I pick up, but never use, here?" She smiled  
"No."

After the jubilant dinner was over, she made her way down the long hallway to the lord's chambers. It did not bother her the way everyone had expected, she had done it all before. The life of an assassin prepares you for so much. She knocked lightly to hear his grunt and a splash. Great, he was bathing.  
"Come Cal, join me." He smiled at her and watched her strip for him. "Just like it was the first time…"

"The armies are so scattered. It seems as if every unit belongs to someone else." Cal sat content on Ares next to her friend and brother in arms.  
Xiahou Dun smiled. "That's because they are. Here, see those flags there those belong to Sun Jian, of Wu. Now his children are Sun Quan, Sun Shang Xing and Sun Ce. They'll always be in red. You might like Sun Shang, although she's a bit hyper at times. And over there is the mighty Lui Bei and his band of virtuous nomads." Dun snickered to himself for the joke.  
"What do you mean?"  
"He has no land that he comes from; he's just a guest general. But he commands a great deal of respect. Behind him is Zhang Fei and that monster is Guan Yu. Always in green."  
"Those look like formidable men Dun."  
"They are Cal, sworn brothers. I expect to see a lot from them."  
"Who is that?" She asked pointing to a man with a rather phallic looking hat.  
"Yuan Shao. Over there, behind him next to Cao Cao is He Jin the commander here. You should be able to meet them; I imagine there will be quite a party tonight."


	3. The Yellow Turban Rebellion

Chapter III

The Yellow Turban Rebellion

"Oh and have you seen Zhou Yu? Isn't he handsome?" Sun Shang Xiang asked excitedly, she needed female conversation the last few months riding beside her brothers was driving her out of her mind.  
"Mmm. Indeed." Zhen Ji smiled wickedly.   
Cal rolled her eyes; the girl talk was making her want to crucify herself. Suddenly she fell forward as a drunken Zhang Fei fell over a crate and into her. "Fool." She hissed.  
"Now see here you…" he focused on her unfamiliar features, "foreign tramp."  
Zhen Ji twirled her flute regally, "Shu brute. Ladies let's find a spot less inclined to be soiled by vermin."  
Shang giggled. "You've been drinking too much sir."  
"I'm sorry ladies; let me extend my apologies on behalf of my brother here." Lui Bei flashed an apologetic smile as he kicked Fei in the ribs.  
"We were just leaving." Zhen Ji smugly walked off with the happy Lady Sun at her heels.   
"And please, let me help you up." Lui Bei offered his hand to Cal and pulled her up off the ground. "He's not always this rude."  
"Yes I am." Fei snapped defiantly spitting as he said it.  
"I say we drag him out to the river and dunk him a few times." Guan Yu looked down at the drunken man disdainfully.  
"Only a few?" Cal commented and Guan Yu looked at her surprised, he obviously didn't expect her to speak his language.  
"Please, come sit with us awhile. We have heard so much about this Western warrior." Lui Bei offered his arm to her gallantly.  
Guan Yu looked down at the young girl. "And maybe shed some light on why you fight for Wei."

"Actually Rome is founded on the same idea, the people. You see the Greeks invented it but we perfected it." Cal was enjoying Lui Bei, he was intelligent and charismatic yet humble. It was a welcome difference from Cao Cao's belligerent arrogance.  
"Well I don't believe it should go that far. An Emperor must make the decisions for his people, because they may not be able to make the best decisions themselves."  
"And you, Calpur…" Guan Yu struggled with the pronunciation, as they all did.  
"Please call me Cal, it alleviates some of the frustration on both our parts."  
"Thank you, and you Cal, what do you fight for?" Guan Yu was still uneasy with her chosen side.  
"I just fight."  
"I don't understand." Lui Bei gave Guan Yu a glance.  
"It's all I know, I kill people. Granted I enjoy being in battle a lot better then sneaking around a villa in the middle of the night, but I still do it because I like to kill."  
"A woman with bloodlust. What an interesting culture you must come from." Guan Yu was intrigued.  
Cal shrugged. "I was orphaned young and raised to be this. I've never known family or anything but my duty."  
"What about friends? Or love?" Lui Bei felt sorry for her now.  
"I've had friends and I've made new ones, like Xiahou Dun. Love? I'm not really sure I know what that is."  
"Why are you with Wei?" Guan Yu was disturbed by her answers.  
"Because they are the first one I came across. Hell, if these Yellow Turbans were a bit further West, I might be over there right now."   
"They are trying to bring in the new way of peace." Lui Bei informed her.  
"Oh, that definitely wouldn't have worked out." She drank some tea and noticed Dian Wei striding towards the table. She knew what this would be about.  
"We're heading back to camp to prepare for tomorrow's attack. Come now." He snorted.  
"I'll find my way back without your help, thanks."  
"Come now, or I'll drag you back by your filthy hair." Wei stood arms crossed in front of her.  
"Are these Cao Cao's orders or you trying to irritate me?"  
"Our lord asks you to return to camp with the rest of the officers, now come." He turned and stormed back to his master's side.  
"One of your friends?" Guan Yu asked.  
"Dian Wei and Zhen Ji are trying to have me ousted because I am not pure Chinese, or even Asian. They find my differences disgusting. Oh and they think I will betray them for the gain of my own people. Little do they know my own 'people' would sooner behead me then follow me to battle." Cal stood up.  
"It was a privilege to meet you and I look forward to seeing you fight tomorrow." Lui Bei kissed her hand.  
"You are so kind, if there is anything I can do…"  
"Join us." Guan Yu watched Lui Bei's confused look. "Cao Cao is ambitious and selfish. If you truly feel the way you do about how an emperor should act, then you belong with us."  
"I'm flattered Lord Guan Yu, but I assure you I understand Cao Cao's motives. I know he is anxiously awaiting the oncoming chaos….but…"  
"Do you want to shed blood that bad?" Guan Yu played with his beard.  
"I don't want to taint your virtue. I have been in Wei for two years because I know Cao Cao understands what I am, because he too has a dark heart. I am a murderer; there is no honor in what I have done."  
"We all kill men; it is what we have to do." Lui Bei's heart was filled with sorrow.  
"Lord Lui Bei, I hear the pain in your voice, you ache for me. All the people I have killed, I do not know remorse. I cannot express how honored I am by your offer, but I cannot accept it for your sake. Thank you, thank you both."


	4. The Fall of Zhang Jiao

Chapter 4

The Fall of Zhang Jiao

"I cannot express the importance of the Wei forces making it to Zhang Jiao first. It will certainly put us in the good graces of the Emperor." Cao Cao stood proudly at the head of the table. He eyed his officers and continued. "Any questions?"  
"You want him dead?' Cal spoke up from the corner, next to Zhen Ji. The women were not allowed to be at the table in an important situation like this.  
Cao Cao squinted at her. "_I_ want to kill him."  
Cal shrugged. "Are the officers under him protected as well?"  
"Kill as many as you'd like, if you're so eager to prove yourself." He smiled back knowing she would try to wipe out all of them herself.  
Xu Huang smiled pleasantly, "Maybe the ladies should stay at a respectable distance from the fighting."  
Zhen Ji snapped. "We ride with our lord to victory; _you_ stay behind if you want."  
"Shall we keep formation or surge through the chaos independently?" Cao Ren rubbed his scruffy chin and looked to his cousin for an answer.

"Do whatever is necessary to make the other commanders look inept. It should not be difficult. Lui Bei is not accustomed to leading men into battle and Sun Jian has to cope with his rambunctious children." Cao Cao laughed. "This should be an easy victory for us. Let this be the beginning of the Wei domination of China. Go."

"Ji, shall we make a little wager?" Cal asked Zhen Ji knowing the woman would jump at the chance for competition.

"What are you thinking, an overall kill count?" Ji tapped her flute in her hand.

"Nah, I'm thinking generals and gate captains. That way we can keep count with swords and shields."

"And what do we play for?" Ji smirked

"Ladies." Xiahou Dun pulled Cal away as he moved out of the room, "Competition of that nature is unbecoming." Under his breath he hissed, "And you know better than to compete with her over something so trivial."

"Dun, she already hates me for stealing Cao Cao's attentions; I'm only playing her game."

"Nonsense, she is married to his son, why would she be jealous of you?"

Cal laughed. "Dun sometimes you amaze me. Do you not know about her fetish?"

Dun stopped and pulled her towards a rock. "What are you talking about?"

"You've never seen her lurking around the castle in her leather dominatrix dress? Or have you not noticed poor Cao Pi's bruises and his lack of interest in riding his horse?" Cal enjoyed breaking the news to him, it was about time she knew something he didn't.

"No….but Cao Cao has nothing to do with, her."

"She may be the master of her husband, but the little vixen likes to be dominated by her father-in-law." She watched Dun's jaw drop. "Oddly enough, it's usually after she plays with Pi. Half the time she leaves the bastard tied up waiting for her while she's fucking his father."

Dun sudden snapped out of his shocked state as she let the curse slip from her lips. "Enough. It's bad enough you are gossiping about our lord and his family and officers but to start uttering such filthy words. Cal you have to remember your place, especially now. If you don't, the other generals will not be as forgiving of your primitive culture as I am. You know the language and you understand the customs, behave like a lady."

"Dun…"

"I'm serious; you're going to get yourself killed for something stupid like that."

------  
Lui Bei sat anxiously on Hex Mark watching the sun rise. Knowing this important battle was before him made sleep impossible. Here before them was a threat to the Han, a mad man capable of magic. So many men had come to bring him down, and Lui Bei knew none of them respected him. Today on this battlefield he would have to prove himself, earn their respect and more then likely gain an enemy or two. Worst of all he was envious of those men out there; they all had homes and lands that they hailed from. He was displaced; everyone knew it and they all made sure to rub it in. He was even classified as a 'guest' general, how flattering.

"You're up early." Guan Yu yawned and stumbled over with a small pot of tea to share.

"As are you."

"I'm not carrying my weapon or sitting on my horse waiting for the order to charge. Besides Zhang Fei snores like a son of a bitch after he's gone to bed drunk. Tea?" He sat down on a stump and offered up a cup. He watched Lui Bei hesitate, knowing he would have to dismount and sit across from him. Reluctantly he jumped down off his horse who yawned himself.

"Thanks."

"What's bothering you?" Guan Yu looked over at the horizon.

"Many things." Lui Bei took a sip of tea then eyed his friend. "Why are you suddenly so agitated by Cao Cao? You were so adamant about him last night…"

"He comes here to exploit this battle. I see it in him."

"Still you cannot be sure of this, we don't even know him. Sure he comes off as arrogant and self absorbed, but it is unlike you to judge people so quickly. Speaking of that, why were you so interested in that girl? What possessed you to ask her to join us?"

"I thought we could use someone like her, to protect you." Guan Yu readied himself for Bei's anger.

"What?! Guan Yu, I have to deal with the entire Allied army putting me down, but I was unprepared for an attack from you."

"Do not take it as an insult. I mean it as a complement. I want to ensure your safety, and honestly she seemed quite taken with you. You know how young girls are." Guan Yu noticed Bei blush, obviously it was not just his imagination. "Rumors are that she's pretty good and at the moment we are definitely lacking in officers for our army. Anyhow, she's turned us down so I don't see why we're discussing this."

"I don't need a foreign concubine anyway."

"Exotic is what they call them these days, my lord."

------  
"Dun, that Lui Bei. Is he sincere?"

"I suppose. He seems like the genuine type. It won't get him very far though." Xiahou Dun yawned and took the cup of tea she offered him. "The nice people rarely get far."

"But his ideas…."

"You talk too much you know that? Maybe you should take up standing in the background instead of initiating conversation with a stranger." Dun smiled at her indignant response.

"Maybe you should stop giving advice and save that for someone wise."

"Sounds like something I can help with." Cao Ren pulled the tea cup that Cal was drinking from out of her hands and filled it for himself. "Thanks Tea Lady."

"Cheer up kid, you'll have your day today." Xiahou Dun winked at her.

"Even if you don't, I'm sure your savior will be here to put you back in his protection. Isn't that right Dun?" Ren chuckled. "You did pick one hell of an apprentice didn't you?"

"I'm not his apprentice." Cal growled. "I've done more in my career so far then you can ever hope of achieving in the rest of your pathetic little life, you squat little prick."

Ren quickly grabbed her throat and lifted her to her feet. "You better clean up that mouth of yours, girl. Maybe where you come from men tolerate that kind of talk, but here our women don't repeat the words they learn from the common rabble."

"Apologize." Dun commanded her.

"Sorry." Cal stepped away as Ren let go.

"It's for your own good." Ren sighed. "If Cao Cao or Dian Wei heard you…"

"Heard what?" Cao Cao strolled over to the campfire with eyebrows raised.

"Uh…." Ren shot a quick glance to Dun who jumped up.

"Pronunciation. Horrible. You know you put the wrong emphasis on something and…" Dun stumbled for his excuse.

"Yeah, it just changes the meaning entirely." Ren agreed

Cao Cao skeptically looked between his cousins then over to his young mistress. Her look of regret confirmed his suspicions "Another instance where you have chosen improper vocabulary and more then likely compounded it with a lack of respect for your superiors." He grinned as he saw his cousins exchange defeated glances. "Now I do believe you and I have had a discussion about this before, haven't we?"

Cal backed up involuntarily as he walked up to her and she flinched as he put his hand on her shoulder. "Yes my lord." She let her eyes dart away from his. She remembered all too well his _discussion_ with one of Zhen Ji's toys. How she had the strength to not kill him in his sleep, she would never know. Suddenly as she felt his hand squeeze her shoulder again she thought about the man she had met last night. She knew that Lui Bei would never have done that to her. Could she see that man with his gentle eyes commanding her to lay across his lap while he struck her ass with a riding crop? Or unbuttoning his pants afterward and telling her to beg for his forgiveness…..

"I asked you a question." Cao Cao repeated sternly.

Cal suddenly looked into those eyes and saw what she always did. Anger and lust. She hadn't heard the question, she had been too deep in thought, but she knew what he had asked. Quietly she answered, "No Sir, it won't happen again."

Cao Cao turned back to the fire and to his officers. As much as he would have liked to punish the girl in front of them, he was rational enough to realize that it was a fantasy that would have to remain as such. Then again, these two had protected her. "Come cousins; let us march off to battle." There were more important things ahead.

------  
The submission of Zhang Jiao was an easy victory for the allies. Despite having mystical powers and surprising the allies with several supernatural traps, he was hardly a worthy opponent for such a skilled army. As the allied forces approached the crazed Zhang Jiao, a heroic Cao Cao thrust he sword into the villain's heart while a few of his officers hacked the remaining turbans to pieces.

"Cao Cao, you are a stalwart hero!" He Jin shouted as he trotted across the fortress to congratulate the Wei ruler.

"Doesn't he know how to say anything else?" Zhang Fei grumbled angrily.

"It would appear Cao Cao has won the day." Guan Yu rode up next to him to watch the Han commander fuss over Cao Cao.

"We have won Guan Yu, that is the important thing. Remember we are allies." Lui Bei walked up, on foot, from behind them.

"My lord, where is your horse?" Zhang Fei looked around expecting the gray to be following his owner like a dog.

Lui Bei shrugged. "I dismounted a ways back so that I could fight with a demoralized unit. He'll turn up."

"My lords." A feminine voice greeted them.

"Oh you. Have you come to gloat?" Zhang Fei snarled.

Cal walked Ares past him and toward Guan Yu. "I was hoping to speak with you Lord Guan Yu…oh Lui Bei, sir, I didn't see you there."

"I can leave if I make you uncomfortable." He said seriously.

"No. I….actually….I was hoping to join you. I know I refused your offer last night but, I want to fight for you. That is if you could accept someone like me."

"I would be honored." Lui Bei smiled warmly to try and alleviate her anxiety. "But why now, now that Wei has vanquished the enemy?"

"I though we were allies." Mumbled Fei.

"I'd just like to fight for what I believe in for once." She looked around obviously avoiding the question. "Did your horse fall in battle?"

"No, he just ditched him somewhere to fight with the foot soldiers." Guan Yu shrugged. "Just for the hell of it."

Lui Bei hit Yu's knee. "Not in front of a lady!"

"Guan Yu, I do believe you and I are going to get along very well." Cal watched him shoot her a confused squint. "My lord, if you do not mind. I must inform a few people of my….defection. I'll see if I can find your horse on my way."

"Then we will see you in camp." Lui Bei held out his hand to try and take hers. Instead he was surprised by her kissing his hand instead. "Thank you, for this chance and honor."

"That chick's weird." Fei shook his head. "Bet she's interesting in the sack though. You are in a dry spell Bei, I guess you better take what you can get."

Lui Bei rolled his eyes. "Why do you insist on discussing this all the time?"

"It's always on my mind, I speak my mind. I bet Cao Cao's had her, he's not picky either." Fei laughed seeing Lui Bei's uncomfortable shuffle.

"It will however be interesting to see how Wei reacts to this." Guan Yu waved at Xiahou Yuan to lure him over. "I wonder what possessed her to join us."

"An officer is an officer." Lui Bei reminded him. "And I do believe she killed more officers then you two combined anyhow."

"Lord Guan Yu, I expect you'd like to congratulate us on an impressive victory." Xiahou Yuan smirked as he rode over.

"I though we were allies." Zhang Fei repeated.

"Actually I was wondering about your little foreign girl." Guan Yu redirected the conversation.

"Oh, her. She's my brother's pet, not mine."

"Is there any reason she'd want to leave Wei?" Fei gruffly asked.

"I wish. I doubt she'll stray far from Dun, though. Why? Is that what she wanted? Hell I knew it, that little bitch." Yuan snorted in disgust. "I hope Cao Cao gets a hold of her before she finishes packing." He turned to ride off towards his comrades.

"Nice going." Yu sneered at Fei.

"Why did you do that?" Lui Bei asked.

"I want to know why she's suddenly interested in leaving Wei."


	5. The Defection to Shu

Chapter 5

The defection to Shu

"I hear you're leaving."

"I was going to tell you, in person." Cal turned to look into Dun's face. His expression was a mixture of disappointment, anger and confusion.

"Well now you'll have to tell the entire Wei army, or at least all the officers." He walked in and sat down on her cot. "What are you doing?"

"I have to do this Dun. I can't stay here anymore, I don't belong here."  
"You've had no problems with it for the past two years." Dun waited, he knew she had to have a good reason.

"I want to fight…..but I want to fight the right way for once. Cao Cao will have me lurking in the shadows soon, I know it. I want to forget my past Dun. I'm not proud of it. I want the chance to be a warrior, not a murderer."

"You don't know that he'll ask that of you." Dun knew it was a stupid argument on his part, they both knew their lord wouldn't hesitate to ask her to kill someone. "But if he does it is your duty to do as your lord asks instead of running from it."

"I want to do something for the right reasons for once. I want to know what it's like to feel so strongly in a purpose that you're willing to die for it."

"And you are sure Lui Bei will be the one to lead you to this euphoric world." Dun spat in disgust.

"Dun, I mean no disrespect to you. I don't want to leave you, my friend." She stopped to grab his hand. "You've been so good to me."

"Everyone has, but you're so willing to turn your back on all of us. Possibly to fight against us." Dun shook her hand off and stormed out of the tent.

"God help me."

-------

"Ah so you do have the courage to tell us all of your desertion." Cao Ren shook his head and brushed past her. "This ought to be good."

"I thought you would never leave." Zhen Ji slithered past. "A truly wonderful day it is."

Cal took a deep breathe and pressed on: into Cao Cao's tent. The immediate silence was the most awkward thing she had ever experienced. "My lords."

Cao Cao stood up. "Up until twenty minutes ago I was going to congratulate you on your achievements today. However, I do believe you have something you'd like to share with all of us."  
"Traitor." Hissed Dian Wei as she passed behind him.

"I've decided I need to aid Lord Lui Bei in his next campaign. This is not a reflection on Wei, but simply a path that I feel I need to take to repent for my past."

"How are we not to take offense at this, my lady?" Cao Ren asked without lifting his eyes from the table.

"I am not ungrateful. On the contrary I cannot express my appreciation for your support and kindness over the last two years."

"Two years that we were _not_ at war." Xiahou Yuan added.

"Tell me Cal, how is it that you can turn you back on us at this time. We are poised to become a great empire, and you are leaving us at a time when it is most pivotal." Xu Huang asked.

"I mean no disrespect…I."

"Simply have taken advantage of my kindness." Finished Cao Cao. "You have taken advantage of my cousin as well; after all he did take a chance on you. But now, look, you shame him. He can't even look at you. And I am shamed as well. I tried to provide you with food, comforts, training and even took you into my own home. Now that you have another option, you jump at that chance. If your loyalties are that flexible, then I do not want you in my camp."

"But…"

"No. Go now, you are released from any wisp of obligation you may think you still have to me or Wei. Go serve you new lord, until you abandon him as well." Cao Cao leaned in and whispered. "But when I crush Shu, you better pray you fall in battle. I will not be so kind when you are my captive."

Cal pulled away from him and looked across the table at all the hate filled stares. Finally her eyes fell on one man, sitting in the corner. She reached out for him on the way out of the tent. "Dun…"

"Go. You've been dismissed."

"I'm sorry….but."

"Away with you." He spat.

------

Lui Bei watched a disheartened Calpurnia Quirinus enter his camp. "You just had to say something Fei."

"I guess she does have the balls to do it then. I'll be damned." Fei put his hands on his hips.

"My lords." Cal dismounted and bowed towards the two men.

"They were not kind then?" Guan Yu asked from behind her, he could have seen her sunken shoulders from a mile away.

"There was only one man I never wished to disappoint. But it is done now." She stroked Ares head.

"Cute little horse." Fei chuckled.

"He's an Arabian you ass." She closed her eyes realizing how she let another curse slip. "Dammit. Shit, ohhhhh" She rested her head against her horse, she couldn't win today.

Guan Yu roared with laughter. "I'll be damned, I do think we'll get along!" He slapped the new girl on the back and punched Fei playfully on the shoulder, "She sure has you pegged."

"Why am I to believe that you will not desert Shu as you have Wei?" Lui Bei asked quietly.

"I give you my word." She looked at him with tear filled eyes.

"That doesn't seem to be worth that much." Fei retorted.

"Fine." She was expecting that. "What would make you believe me?"

"Time." Lui Bei said. "We hardly know you."

"I know enough." Guan Yu wrapped his arm around her. "With a tongue like yours I bet you aren't afraid to drink! Come let's celebrate our allied victory before we head home."

"Home? When did we acquire that?" Fei snorted.

"Lord Lui Bei, I will do whatever necessary to prove myself to you." Cal stared into his gentle eyes that had a relaxing effect on her.

"I bet." Fei elbowed Bei in the ribs.

Lui Bei looked at him and blushed. "Zhang Fei you are out of line!"

"How creative. Did you come up with that line of thinking by yourself? Certainly such a witty insult must have been concocted by someone of vast intelligence. I certainly haven't heard anything along those lines in all my years of service." She shot back without hesitation.

"Hah!" Guan Yu shouted. "That ought to shut you up!"

"My lord, please don't worry. I take offense at very little and I certainly am not afraid to eviscerate anyone who does piss me off. Oh….did you ever find your horse?"

"Yes actually. Lady Sun found him." Lui Bei smiled. "Took me hours of hearing about her exploits to get him back though. Plus she braided his mane."

Cal finally smiled. "She is a very hyper girl isn't she?"

"Now we finally have one of our own! And this one comes on her very own little hyper horse." Guan Yu smiled. "Let's celebrate our new officer! Our little army is growing at a staggering rate now!"

------  
"I am sorry cousin, but you understand? I could not leave her to walk among us if she was not loyal." Cao Cao watched Xiahou Dun toy with his dim sum.

"Yes, Cao. I just wasn't prepared for this. It's all so sudden. I don't understand where this all came from. Did anything happen between you two recently, a fight maybe?" He asked hesitantly, this was something they had never discussed.

"I did not notice anything wrong with her." Cao Cao put him at ease.

"I'm sorry, I've put everyone in jeopardy. I just don't know what's gotten into her lately."

"Don't worry Dun, she may come back. Women are known for their foolish decisions. Give her some time to see the error of her ways."

"I had hoped by taking her in that she could be of service to Wei. I thought she could grow to love you as I do, as our lord. I'm sorry I have failed you cousin."

"Dun, you are my most trusted officer. I never doubted your intent. You never know, it may work out in our favor, if she does get close to Lui Bei. We never know where our paths will cross again."

------

Cal and Lui Bei cringed as Zhang Fei tried to hit a high note in his song of drunken stupor. Guan Yu, well on his way to being drunk, was immune to the ear drum shattering pitch. "Dear God, that man is a weapon." Cal shook her head to get the ringing out.

"Why Yu encourages him is beyond me. Tell me Cal, what did you mean about your horse? You said he was an Arabian? Is that a special type from where you come from?"

"Well, yes. He's actually a special breed from the deserts around Egypt. They're fast with a great deal of stamina and very sure footed. I'm very lucky to have him. The army bought a few and I was one of the lucky ones to get one."

"Oh, what special task earned you that privilege?"

Cal fidgeted. "Well, my past is murky."

"You called yourself a murderer once…is that something you don't want to discuss?"

"No, you need to know. I was an assassin in the Roman legions. I killed politicians, soldiers, enemies. Whomever I was ordered to. I received Ares as my mount because he would carry me to my victim quicker, and ensure an easy escape. I came to China because I was set-up by my commander and I needed to escape Rome. That was two years ago. I've been in Cao Cao's service and under Xiahou Dun's tutelage since. I came to you because…I want to be legitimate. I don't want to kill people like that anymore; I want to kill them honorably. If I stayed with Cao Cao, he would have had me slitting throats again. You're so honest and righteous; I knew you wouldn't ask that of me."

"I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault I am what I am. Fighting for you won't change the fact that I enjoy the kill. I'll understand if you don't want me here because of that."

Lui Bei took her hand. "My dear, changes that big cannot happen overnight. You are most welcome in my camp and in my service."

Fei stumbled over and pointed at Lui Bei. "Watch out! She just wants to get in your pants." With that he passed out.

"Do you ever kick him after he passes out?" Cal asked.

"He's bitchy enough with a hangover."


	6. The Long Road Home

Chapter 6

The long road home

"Cal!" Sun Shang Xiang came galloping towards the small group of Shu officers.

"Oh no, I've talked with her enough for ten lifetimes. You're on your own." Lui Bei kicked Hex Mark into a slow canter.

"Some lord of the people you're turning out to be!" She shouted after him.

"Cal! I can't believe it! Is it true? Ji told me just now! It must be true you're here! Wow!" Shang was bursting with excitement.

"Guan Yu, Is that your lord ahead?" Sun Jian asked the giant as he rode up behind his daughter.

"Yes, Lord Sun. He wanted to scout out the terrain." Yu lied.

"Probably trying to avoid my talkative daughter." Jian coughed as she gave him a cold glance.

"Then ride with him if you're tired of me then!" She hollered.

"Sounds good to me." Sun Ce laughed as he approached.

"Come son, the mighty Sun warrior has spoken her orders, be quick or invoke her wrath." Jain laughed with his oldest son and together they rode towards Lui Bei.

"We should join them Fei." Guan Yu smacked his sworn brother who was coping with a hefty hangover.

"Okay." He mumbled and rode off.

"Well let them go then." Shang said angrily.

Cal laughed, "I say once we catch up with them we start talking about monthly issues."

Shang's face lit up. "You are good. That should make them squirm."

"Or get me fired."

"So is it true? Did you do it? Really?"

"Easy. One question at a time." Cal smiled at the girl.

"Well?" Shang hung over the edge of the saddle, eyes wide.

"I did leave Wei, and it did not go well. I'm definitely not welcome there anymore. I fight for Lui Bei now."

"Wow. What happened?" She looked around for anyone close enough to overhear. Satisfied they were well enough away she asked, "Was it Cao Cao? Did he touch you? I always see the way he looks at girls, he's vile."

"Shang! If your father heard you he'd…"

"Now that's why we're talking, without my father here. Please! No one ever tells me things; they think I'm such a child!"

"Alright but if you breathe a word to anyone…."

"Never! You have my word!"

"Ok, Shang, what do you want to know?"

"Did you and he…you know...have relations."

Cal smiled. She was so eager for any forbidden information yet she couldn't bring herself to say the words. "Unfortunately."

"Wow…is he really weird?"

"He defiantly likes to be in control."

"Why did you let him, you don't sound like you wanted to. I mean the Qiaos are always telling me how good it feels but…"

"Shang, maybe we shouldn't be talking about this…."

"Cal please! Those little tramps are always giggling about everything they tell me because no one tells me details. And everyone thinks I don't know _anything_. Really it's ok; I need to know something more then I do. I know all about men playing with themselves, I walk in on Sun Quan all the time. You'd think he'd lock a door or hide in a corner. Nope, just take care of it wherever you want Quan, _my_ mind isn't scared repeatedly by seeing you stroke it in the hallway!"

Cal burst into laughter. Never did she expect to hear such language out of a princess.

"What's so funny?" Asked a handsome, yet boyish, officer from behind them.

Both girls turned to look at him and Cal cocked a questioning eyebrow his way. "Who are you?"

"Who are you?" He replied.

"Zhao Yun! You're late." Lui Bei came galloping back towards his new arrival.

"Sorry my lord." Yun smiled childishly and laughed as he spotted Zhang Fei and Guan Yu. "You both look like you've been up drinking into the night."

"You missed it." Guan Yu shook his head. "Some might call you conveniently late."

"Do you know who he is?" Cal looked over at Shang who was blushing.

"No, but I'd like to." The princess whispered

"I hear some call him Zhao Yun, but little else is known about this mysterious man." Cal winked at Shang who giggled at the joke.

"Already insulting my newest officer, Calpurnia?" Lui Bei realized how rude it must have seemed to the ladies to not introduce the new man but he couldn't help himself. The joking atmosphere was contagious.

"I'd hate to have him feel left out of _everything_." She smiled back.

"Zhao Yun, please meet Sun Shang Xiang, Sun Jain's daughter, and Shu's newest officer Calpurnia Quercetus from Rome." Lui Bei was proud of his pronunciation.

"Actually it's Quirinus. You just called me an oak forest, my lord. Nice to meet you sir."

"So you're wearing Wei colors by mistake then?" Yun prodded

"No sir, I just left Wei last night. If it bothers you I'm sure I can change into a blanket or something so you can color code me correctly." Cal shot back.

"Watch out Yun, you won't be able to handle such a spirited woman!" Yu shouted. "She's been raised by soldiers."  
"Actually I'm a retired assassin. What do you do?" She turned back to the new man.

"I protect Lui Bei." He winked back.

"Funny, so do I."

"Now children, if you two can't get along I'm going to assign one of you to look after Zhang Fei in his post-inebriated state."

Cal watched Lui Bei's face light up as Yun laughed at the joke. This man must be more like Bei, since Fei and Yu are such obvious buddies. Looking back at Zhao Yun she could see that he would be a good candidate for Lui Bei's chess partner. Lui Bei glanced back at the women, captivated by Shang's delightful laugh. "Now Shang, if I didn't know better I would have said that Lord Lui Bei had just got laid, since he is in such a good mood."

The men all stopped and stared at her for the sudden sexual reference in the presence of Lady Sun. Shang laughed when she saw Lui Bei blush and added, "I bet if we could find Quan he'd have the same happy look too! He's proof you don't need a partner to be satisfied." She laughed again.

"Ladies!" Lui Bei was appalled, but really didn't know how to handle the situation. Guan Yu's roaring laughter erupted from behind him.

"Hell they've both been raised by soldiers! We better put an end to that practice before our lord's face turns so red his head explodes."

"You _did_ want to know what was so funny, didn't you?" Cal asked coyly.

"I did ask that didn't I?" Zhao Yun chuckled.

-----

"So we are to return home?" Cal asked Guan Yu who was eating rice from a really tiny bowl.

"We don't really have a home." Yu shoved some rice into his mouth. "Sorry, we should have warned you before you signed on."

"I've been chased out of Rome and thrown out of Wei. That's a large chunk of the world I'm not welcome in. Now not having somewhere to reside isn't something that's going to bother me." She looked around. "Is there more rice?"

"How can you eat so much?" Zhao Yun asked. "Our women eat so little, it's incredible to see one that can eat more then Yu."

"It's only rice." She shrugged it off on went on a quest for more food.

"Gentlemen, Lord Sun Jian has just informed me that we are going to redirect our march towards Si Shui Gate." Lui Bei settled down on the log next to Guan Yu.

"Oh? What's there?" Zhang Fei joined the group with rice of his own.

"Dong Zhuo has become too powerful. Cao Cao worries that the emperor is no longer in control so he is calling us all back into action."

"So we still have to listen to him?" Cal sat down next to Zhao Yun since Lui Bei stole her prior seat. She dug into her bowl of rice happily.

"Yes dear." Bei sighed. "Dong Zhou has Li Jue stationed at Si Shui, with all three armies; it should be easy for us to push on to Hu Lao Gate quickly."

"Oh, great. So we get to fight Lu Bu sooner. Fantastic." Zhang Fei mumbled.

"Lu Bu? Who's he?" Cal asked and got astonished stares from all the men. "What?"

"You've been here how long? Two years? And you've never heard of Lu Bu?" Guan Yu asked quizzically.

"No. Why? Is he some sort of bad-ass?"

"He's only the greatest warrior in all of China." Zhao Yun explained. "And he rides the fastest horse in all of China to make matters worse."

"Oh, so you're not looking forward to kicking his ass?" She looked to Guan Yu and Zhang Fei who were always eager for a duel.

Lui Bei gave her a disbelieving shake of his head. "Cal, the man is huge. He wields the Sky Scorcher, a powerful halberd, and clears men out from around him easily. The mere mention of Lu Bu's name is enough to demoralize men, and the sight of him has routed many units. He is fearless and ferocious. And you young lady are going to stay away from him you hear me?"

"What?" She gave him an innocent look.

"You heard me. I saw you at the last battle, plowing through men and attacking officers wherever you can find them. He is not a man to toy with, he will kill you. Promise me you'll stay clear of him."

"You don't have a chance against him darling." Guan Yu added "Stay away from him."

"I'm no coward. I won't back down from a fight, no matter how incredible my opponent's reputation is." Cal sat upright; she was getting annoyed at these overprotective men.

"Calpurnia, promise me you will not seek him out and will try to stay clear of him. Please." Lui Bei locked onto her eyes, hoping to stare her down.

"I promise." She mumbled.

"Thank you." Lui Bei yawned. "Well rest tonight men; we march back towards battle tomorrow. Oh and one more thing girl."

"Yes sir."

"I'm assigning you two bodyguards, try to keep them alive."


	7. Si Shui Gate

Chapter 7

Si Shui Gate

"Why do they get to go and we have to stay here?" Shang huffed.

"Now Shang, a lot of us have been left out. This is a really important meeting, only the commanders and their immediate subordinates need to be there." Zhao Yun explained. He too was growing tired of waiting. They were taking so long to decide on an allied commander, he wondered what could be taking so much time.

"Shang what do you know of this Lu Bu guy?" Cal asked and stuck her tongue out at Yun who gave her an annoyed look.

"Lu Bu, THE Lu Bu? Oh Cal please don't go fight him, please! I haven't had a girlfriend in so long; I don't want to loose you."

"See?" Yun smirked.

"Just asking." Cal mumbled.

"Oh my father wanted me to ask you to look out for supplies. We're running low since we didn't make it all the way back home. So shout if you see something, huh?" Shang plopped down next to Yun, purposely a little too close.

"Sure. That sounds like a job for you Cal." Yun winked.

"You're the one who skipped out on the last battle, Lord Zhao. It sounds like a convenient excuse to miss out on this one too." She shot back.

Yun chuckled; he enjoyed the playful banter with the new girl. "I forgot. You are the headhunter aren't you?"

"Actually, I'm not overly sure how well this blade will decapitate." She unsheathed the rapier and looked at it, admiring the fine craftsmanship again. As she ran her eyes up and down the blade she saw something familiar ahead near the tent. It took a moment for her to refocus on the figure, and then she caught his angry eyes. Xiahou Dun had been watching them, and it was obvious the hurt of her betrayal had not worn off any.

"Who's that?" Shang asked.

"Xiahou Dun." Cal replied sadly.

"Oh. Maybe you should go talk to him. Yes?" She prodded.

Sheathing the weapon he had given her she turned away from his heated gaze. "No, I've already caused him enough trouble."

"I can, if you want." Shang offered. It bothered her to see her new friend upset.

"No, but thank you. I'm going to go see if Ares wants some water." With that she was gone.

"What was that about?" Yun asked curiously.

Shang poked at the ground with a stick. "He was her benefactor when she was over in Wei. They were friends and when she left, well it didn't sit too well with him."

"I can imagine." He shifted his attention back to Shang who was finding ways to rub up against him. She was beginning to remind him of a cat he used to have. "Maybe you should go help her find some new clothes, maybe something green?"

Shang's head pooped up. "Hey yeah! That is a good idea. Oh Zhao Yun you're so smart." She batted her eyelashes at him and took off running.

"Oh Zhao Yun you're so smart." Zhang Fei mimicked. "And so pretty, you look more girlish then I do! Oh marry me please!"

Yun threw a stick at him. "Go fetch."

-------

"It is decided then?" Yun jumped up as Lui Bei and Guan Yu approached.

"Yes, Yuan Shao will be commander." Bei answered the questioning glances from Yun and Fei.

"That's the fertility helmet guy right?" Cal walked up to the boys, fidgeting with her sword belt. She noted the silence and looked up to see stunned stares. "What now?"

"That's just a very form fitting outfit." Guan Yu smiled appreciatively.

"You don't like it?" She asked. She had thought the tight green pants were a bit much, especially with her big roman birthing hips, but Shang assured her they looked great. She looked down at herself and noticed her cleavage. "Wow, this vest makes my boobs look huge!"

"I'll say." Sun Ce had materialized out of nowhere. "I saw those from all the way over there!"

"See Ce! I told you I made her look really good! You should introduce her to Lu Meng; he's still single isn't he?" Shang bounced up and down with excitement.

"Uhh…" Cal didn't like the turn that the conversation was taking. "I'm going to go get my horse. We're ready to leave right?"

"Oh good! Riding! That's a really good idea!" Sun Ce clapped.

Shang hit her brother on the back of his head. "You're already married remember? I didn't bring you over here to gawk."

"Yes you did!" Ce retaliated by picking her up and slinging her over his shoulder. "Well see you guys on the battlefield, try to keep up huh? Let's go sis, we need to help pops. We're the front lines today!"

"Bye! I'll see you after the battle! Take care everyone, you too Yun!" Shang waved as her brother carried her away.

"You too Yun. Oh my precious little doll face." Fei squeaked.

"I think Fei just volunteered to fight Lu Bu alone. Did anyone else just hear that?" Yun huffed.

"Should I change?" Cal asked bashfully, she wasn't used to men staring at her at all.

"No." Fei, Yun and Yu all said in unison.

"Lord Lui Bei?" she asked hesitantly.

"Uhh, no it's fine." He turned beet red when he realized he had just answered her question to her breasts.

"Hey, everyone thinks you're a whore anyway. You might as well look the part." Fei smiled.

Cal grinned, "Well if you want to bang Zhen Ji but don't have a chance or don't want to be spanked…I guess that leaves me."

"Wow, no one can trip you up can they?" Yun asked with a laugh. "Maybe we should send her up against Lu Bu, she can converse him into retreat."

"If I were you Zhao Yun, I'd watch yourself. You're dealing with the one person that can fill Sun Shang's head with very naughty little seduction ideas. You are treading on very thin ice my friend." Cal adjusted her vest. "I guess it's too late to change now. Are we going to fight or what?"

----------

"Where are the supplies? I don't understand. Yuan Shu assured me he would find us supplies." Sun Jian watched Si Shui Gate nervously. The fighting was going on everywhere but here. They were camped here too long already, the water was gone and the men were beginning to get worried.

"I'll ride back to headquarters, I'll be quick!" Shang jumped at the chance to do something.

"Yes, that would be good." Jian nodded without taking his eyes off the gate.

"Don't get lost looking for Zhao Yun." Ce teased her.

After Shang left, Jian turned to his son and asked, "What was that about?"

"Oh she's just got a crush on a Shu officer that's all. I'm just happy she's not chasing after Zhou Yu at the moment." Ce answered.

Zhou Yu sighed gratefully, "As am I."

"We may need to look into finding her a husband." Jian sighed; he didn't want to let his baby girl go but….

----------

"Lord Lui Bei!" Guan Yu galloped up to the Shu leader. "The north gates are closed, we cannot advance any further here."

"Let us finish off these remaining men then move to reinforce Sun Jian."

"Are we moving?" Cal slid up on Ares and the excited colt reared and struck an enemy in the skull.

"We will have to swing back around towards the main gates." Lui Bei told her.

"I'll head that way then, to tell Sun Jian of our impending arrival. I hope he's got his supplies or it may be very empty when you get there." She spun around and took off at full gallop back towards the east.

The two bodyguards looked up at Lui Bei, exasperated. "Sir, she keeps running away!"

"Attach yourselves to my elite guards for the moment then. I'll discuss it with her later." Lui Bei looked to Guan Yu with a roll of his eyes. "I'm never going to train her to be a good officer."

"You're the patient one." Yu laughed and rode back into the massacre.

---------

  
"Cal!" Shang screamed as she saw the little grey colt approaching.

"Shang? What are you doing up here?" Cal brought Ares to a bouncing halt.

"Yuan Shu says he has no supplies to send us but that there is a supply depot out near Lui Bei's position. I'm heading that way to see if I can find it."

"Great. I'm heading for your position now to let your father know Lui Bei will be reinforcing him soon. I'll let him know you're on a supply quest." Cal saluted and rode off.

Shang smiled _I've never been saluted before!  
_

_-------  
_

"Lord Yuan Shao! Si Shui's gates have opened! Hua Xiong has struck out and has engaged Sun Jian's troops. Sir, without supplies the men are fading fast. Hua Xiong is heading this way." An aid from the Wu camp reported.

"Dammit! Can no one defeat Hua Xiong?" he hollered.

------

"Ares I do believe we have been issued a challenge." Cal was up on his neck pressing him for a faster speed, which the colt was happy to deliver. As she swung around the corner she noticed the turning tide of the battle. Wu was not faring well, the men were famished and dehydrated, however the enemy was well rested and well fed. She swung Ares toward the most imposing figure she could see and prayed that it was Hua Xiong.

"You cannot defeat Hua Xiong!" He yelled full of adrenaline at the wavering Wu troops.

"Like hell I can't." Cal plowed through his men and leapt off Ares as she reached the enemy general.

"Is this what Yuan Shao sends to beat me? A little slave girl?" Hua Xiong dismounted slowly. "Very well then."

Cal whipped her rapier out and charged him, "I am no slave, you pig."

-------

"Lord Guan Yu!" Shang galloped up to him. "Have you seen a supply depot around here? Or maybe, some sort of entrance to this fortress on the other side of the ridge?"

"No my lady. I am sorry."

"Has Yuan Shu not delivered supplies to your father yet?" Lui Bei rode over.

"No, he swears he has none now! I must find a way into the depot!" She slashed at an enemy private with her chakram in frustration. "I cannot let my father down!"

"We have not seen anything, Lady Sun I am sorry." Lui Bei apologized but the girls eyes were drawn to a small barricade between the rocks.

"I will open the gates to the fortress, be ready." She saluted and jumped off her horse. She hit the ground running and leapt onto some crates. With one more jump she was over the wall.

"Well I'll be…" Guan Yu smiled.

--------

"Sir! Hua Xiong has been slain!" a private reported

Li Jue watched the gates nervously. "By whom?" Certainly men would be streaming through at any second.

"A woman…a Shu officer." The man bowed and headed back to the gates.

"You are about to be bested by a woman?" Zhang Liao laughed. "Won't General Lu Bu be pleased?"

"If you're so confident, you go lead the charge. If she beat Hua Xiong…." Li Jue shifted uncomfortably in the saddle.

"Fine, but don't expect to keep your head once Lu Bu finds out." Liao galloped off to battle.

--------

Shang ran through the small pass and suddenly burst into open space. She gasped as a small detachment of guards and two enemy generals turned to meet her. Quickly she raced over to the gate and slashed the defense captain's throat open. The gates began to open. She raised her chakram to block the simultaneous blows from the angered generals. Arrows were raining down around her and she saw the gates wide open, but no men entered through them. Suddenly with all of her energy she burst into a screaming striking attack. Both men were knocked off their horses and several guards were tossed out of the way. When she stopped she saw her crowd clearing effort was worth it. Shang focused on the man with the shiniest armor and attacked.

--------

"Zhang Liao is attacking! Sun Jian is about to retreat!" A man came flying down the pass screaming as he ran.

Lui Bei galloped around the corner, flying by his commanding officer he turned to shout to Guan Yu. "Take Zhang Liao I'll help Lady Sun with the supplies!"

"Yes sir!" Guan Yu galloped straight into the heaviest of fighting.

As Hex Mark flew into the supply depot Lui Bei saw an officer about ready to run out the gate. Easily he killed him with one strike.

"Hey! That one was mine!" Shang ran up and waved her chakram angrily at him.

"Sorry my lady."

"Where were you ten minutes ago?" she huffed.

"Riding around the long way." He apologized and looked around. "My dear girl you found it didn't you? Quick let's get these supplies to your father before it's too late!"

-------

"Zhou Yu!" Cal shouted at the easily recognizable man. "Greeting from Lui Bei! He will be here to reinforce you as soon as he can." She turned to ride back towards the gate. "Oh and Shang is looking for supplies, Yuan Shu had none to give. Please relay that to your lord."

"Thank you." He tried to remember her name, why was it so difficult. "uh Cow?"

Cal turned away and snapped "Dammit I knew these pants made my hips look big." She galloped off and charged through the gate.

"Cal! That's what it was! Ooops."

----------

"This battle is lost." Zhang Liao cursed Li Jue's ineptitude as he saw the supply wagons begin to move toward Sun Jian's position. He spun around and went back through the gate and off to Lu Bu, who was watching from the hills above.

--------------

Cal saw Li Jue on his horse well before the man ever noticed her. She attacked him and he began to run around in circles. "Damn you, you coward!" She cursed as he wove through tents and fences trying to escape.

"Retreat! Retreat!" he screamed.

"You think that will save you?" She chased after him as he ran through the gate to his rear and up the hill. Guards were jumping in her way and she had to clear them before she could advance. She saw the tail of Li Jue's horse disappear around the corner and she kicked Ares into a gallop. "I have you now!"

As she tore around the corner a very hard object knocked her clean off the back of her horse and she landed on her back with a thud. Gasping for air in the dust she had created by falling, she opened her eyes slowly. Her head was tilted sideways and she saw a pair of black hooves that ran into fire red legs. As she worked her way up, the gold armor looked very unfamiliar and the blur of snorting horse was equally puzzling. Slowly the horse turned his head and stamped his foot angrily and she briefly saw an equally angry man in ornate armor before he used the blunt end of his halberd to knock her unconscious.

------------

"Lui Bei! I owe you my thanks! Without those supplies we would have surely had to retreat." Sun Jian offered his hand "Thank you ally."

"I cannot accept your gratitude; I did not capture the supply depot. I was too late. Your daughter had already eliminated everyone by the time I got there. I just helped with transport."

"Well." Sun Jian thought about it. "Still, thank you."

"My lord, Zhang Liao is nowhere to be found. I assume he retreated with the rest of the troops." Guan Yu rode up and updated Lui Bei.

"Everything's secure, pops." Sun Ce reported.

"We have secured the supply depot, sir." Zhao Yun reported.

"Excellent. I suppose we should report to Yuan Shao shouldn't we?" Sun Jian asked Lui Bei.

"Probably should." He agreed.

"Lord Zhao Yun! Have you seen Cal?" Shang rode up obviously troubled.

"Ah, and here is my little hero!" Sun Jian's face lit up when she arrived.

"Oh…" She blushed "I just…"

"Wiped out the entire fortress herself." Lui Bei smiled. "And then reprimanded me for being late and killing one of her enemies."

"You make me proud daughter."

"Thank you, my lords." She giggled a little from the attention.

"Speaking of accomplishments, your friend killed Hua Xiong." Zhou Yu watched her face light up.

"Cal, you saw her! Where?" She asked.

"I haven't seen her since, sorry. But my compliments when you do find her…and apologize for me. I accidentally called her a cow." Zhou shrugged.

"How does that happen accidentally, exactly?" Zhao Yun questioned.

"Oh not now, I can't find her!" Shang was distraught.

"Don't worry; she tends to keep moving to where the fighting is." Guan Yu reassured her. "Relax. She'll be fine. Right now you're the lady of the hour."


	8. Luo Yong

Chapter 8

Luo Yong

Cal opened her eyes slowly, her head was pounding, other then that she felt fine. Looking around the small room she knew she wasn't anywhere friendly. If she was on allied ground, her weapons would be here. This was not good. More importantly, who was that stranger that had hit her? She looked around again and noticed light from under the door, along with voices. Slowly she crept out of bed, thankful to still be fully clothed. Gently she opened the door and saw the three guards playing cards and more importantly- her rapier and knife.

The youngest of the guards looked up and started at her briefly in shock before jumping up. "Up with your hands!"

She kicked the door open and came out with her hands raised while the other two guards circled her, swords raised. "Easy boys, not much I can do to you." She sidestepped towards the desk.

"Halt. Don't take another step!" the oldest hollered.

She raised an eyebrow and grinned, "Make me." With a swift kick she knocked the chair into him and jumped onto the table and over to the desk. Quickly she drew her weapon and held the scabbard in her left hand. She poked three holes in the youngest man and watched him drop. He had failed to move, obviously from shock. The old one charged her and she used the scabbard to crack a nasty gash in his head before opening up his throat. "Next?" She was disappointed when the man ran out the door.

She quickly sheathed the sword, grabbed her knife and ran after him into the next room. Before she could stop to aim her throw the man flew backwards and landed squirming on the ground. He was ripped open from throat to thigh. She looked into the shadows to see the man who had been riding the fire red stud emerge. He held his halberd away from him so that the blood could drip off. Cal was impressed with him. He was huge and menacing and his smoldering eyes watched her every move. His ornate armor shone brilliantly, only making him look larger than life. Above all she saw the same thing that she often saw reflected in the eyes of the men she killed, the bloodlust. They were the same kind. "You must be Lu Bu." She said with a smile.

"Hmmm. I am." He said without moving. "And you are?"

"Not intimidated by you whatsoever." She lied. She threw the knife into the doorframe behind her and drew her rapier again

He replied with a malicious laugh, "We'll see." He began his advance slowly moving his halberd in was she never imagined a human could. He was truly one with his weapon. She summed up the situation easily. He outweighed her, had armor, his weapon was at least fifty pounds heavier then hers and he was definitely more experienced with his weapon. Her only advantages were speed and maneuverability. She did the one thing that she didn't think he's expect, she charged him. He was caught him off guard and she punched a neat little hole in his right arm before ducking under the halberd and moving in behind him. She inched closer to the shadows, the one place she worked best.

Lu Bu glanced down at the wound, hardly noticeable. But it was the first time anyone had actually injured him, and on the first blow too. She was quick and he watched her try to lure him into the darkness of the corner. He smiled and rushed her, and she caught him in a deadlock, her only choice. He pushed her back, her boots sliding easily on the floor. He admired her for trying but they both knew this was a losing effort. She was straining with ever fiber of her being and he was barely trying. He leaned in closer to her and stared into her straining face. She growled at him and with furious eyes she locked onto his gaze, "Shall I end your suffering?" He pushed her away causing her to loose her balance and then he kicked the girl backwards. She landed on her back and watched her rapier spin across the slick floor. Effortlessly he spun his weapon so that sky scorcher was at her throat. "Who are you? I will not ask you again."

"Since you asked so nicely. Quirinus Calpurnia. Everyone calls me Cal because I am tired of having my name butchered."

"Odd name."

"Not in Rome. However, "she looked up into his eyes and smirked, "Not as bad as 'Bu'"

"Rome? You're awful far from home." He gently twisted his weapon to dig into her flesh a bit. He didn't need to take abuse for his name.

"I took a wrong turn in Persia. However I must say that so far your hospitality skills are the worst that I have encountered, you demented colossus."

Lu Bu pushed Sky Scorcher closer to her throat, "I should kill you for your smart mouth."

She coughed a little as the blade was pressing against her throat. "But I don't think you will, because you like it."

He pulled his weapon away. "At the very least you must be worth interrogating."

"Oh the amusements never cease around here do they?" She sat up and saw a brief second when he exposed his lower arm toward her. She launched a kick at the weak spot under his bracer and to her surprise the halberd fell. With speed she didn't think she had, Cal leapt across the floor grabbed her weapon and was on her knee in an instant. Unfortunately it was not quick enough.

Lu Bu has recovered and grabbed his weapon before it hit the ground. As she turned to meet him the Sky Scorcher whipped through the air pinning the Celestial Blade to the floor as his foot planted itself on her chest and slammed her into the ground. He leaned over her again and put some more pressure on her chest. "Want to try again?

"Maybe later." She released the rapier so that her now twisted wrist could have some relief. She struggled for a second then relaxed. Whether she liked it or not he was going to win every time. "Glad to see you live up to your reputation."

"Are you?" he squinted at her. _What an odd woman.  
_

_  
----------------------  
_

It did not take long for Lu Bu to drag her into the main audience chamber where Dong Zhou and Zhang Liao were having lunch. She had underestimated his speed, something that surprised her for such a large man. As he dropped her into a chair next to his friend she watched the quizzical gaze from Zhang Liao turn into indifference. Cal straightened up in the chair and watched the huge warrior toss her weapon carelessly on a small console table in the corner.

"Go ahead, try again if you'd like." He said without turning to look at her. He knew her eyes had followed him to track the rapier's new location. "Thin sword, small knife and tiny horse. Hmmpf."

"They all get the job done." She watched a bowl of food appear in front of her and turned to watch the quick little servant girl run back to the kitchen. She peered into the bowl as Lu Bu sat down in the seat to her right.

"We're not trying to poison you." Zhang Liao looked up at her with his chopsticks poised in front of his mouth.

"So you're the one who eliminated Hua Xiong and chased Li Jue up the mountain pass?" Dong Zhou asked from across the table.

"Yes, and you are?" She looked at him and was wholeheartedly unimpressed. How could such a man have these two warriors in his service?

"Dong Zhou. And to your left is Zhang Liao. I believe you have already been introduced to Lu Bu?"

"Yes, he has excellent manners. Truly a fine diplomat" She looked back down at the steaming bowl in front of her. "I've met of the Tiger of Jang Dong, but this is the first time I've had the pleasure of meeting the Kitten of Hu Lao Gate." She watched Lu Bu's eyes fill with rage, and then she asked, "What is this?"

"Are you always this insulting to your host?" Zhang Liao asked casually.

"Actually yes. I insult people at an astounding rate." She picked up the chopsticks and picked through the food.

"If you don't want it I'll have the servants take it away." Lu Bu hissed in irritation.

"It wouldn't take very much to put this chopstick through your eyeball." She picked up a chunk of what she guesses to be chicken and inspected it.

Zhang Liao's eyebrows furrowed as he looked across the table at his friend and commander. _Was he letting her get away with that?_ He saw a small smirk appear on the edges of Lu Bu's lips.__

"I'd like to see how well that goes, you've done so well fighting against me so far. Actually, " He leaned back and stretched out his legs, "I imagine that chopstick is a bit longer than you can handle. Maybe I can have them fetch you a toothpick."

She actually chuckled at his joke. "I'll be damned you're actually kind of witty. And I had you pegged for the all brawn no brains type." She maintained her focus on the chicken and took a deep breath before putting it in her mouth. She chewed and suddenly her face lit up. "Holy shit this is really good!"

Zhang Liao stopped eating and looked around the table. Dong Zhou had been unmistakingly silent, obviously disturbed by her lack of fear in dealing with Lu Bu. Lu Bu however was incredibly calm and unannoyed-a rarity. In fact the highly aggressive general actually seemed to be amused by her. Dong Zhou picked up on this as well. Liao looked back to the girl who was shoveling food into her mouth. "It's cashew chicken."

"A culinary masterpiece is what it is."

"General Lu Bu." Dong Zhou stood up and continued. "I'm retiring to my chambers for the rest of the afternoon. Since you seem so amused by this Shu trash you brought home, she's yours to do with as you please. May I suggest you teach her how to act in the presence of men?"

"Lord Dong Zhou," Cal smiled sweetly, "Both Shu and Wei have counseled me on such behavior, I just don't think you deserve that kind of respect. Enjoy your reign of terror while you can, sir, because your head will be rolling through Hu Lao Gate in a matter of days."

"Such overconfidence will be your downfall. Lu Bu, enjoy yourself." Dong Zhou left to join Diao Chan who was waiting for him in his chambers.

"Where's he in such a rush to?" Cal asked unconcerned with any of the man's statements.

"What exactly is wrong with you? How come you show more concern for the chicken you are about to eat then the threats of our lord or even General Lu?" Zhang Liao asked with much curiosity.

"Hell I'm screwed no matter what I say or do. So did I really get under his skin or what?" Cal asked the two hostile boys beside her.

"No, " Liao hesitated, "He's off to share the comforts of his mistress." He caught Lu Bu's flash of anger.

Cal caught Lu Bu's sudden change in mood as well. "What's the matter with you? Jealous that the fat man's got a woman?"

Lu Bu growled. "She's not just any woman. Diao Chan is the most beautiful woman in the world, and you had better watch what you say about her. I will kill you for that."

"The mighty Lu Bu has to share his woman with _him_?" Cal laughed. "Must be great lying in bed alone thinking about that gluttonous son of a bitch trying to screw your girlfriend without suffocating her."

Lu Bu grabbed her by her hair and pulled her out of the chair. "I won't be alone."

-----------------

Lu Bu threw her onto his bed and slammed the door. He turned to see her casually sit and watch him. "I didn't think you'd be the type to plead for mercy. Good." He started to take off his bracers.

She flopped back on the pillows and rested her arms behind her head. "On the contrary I'm looking forward to this. Two years of no one but Cao Cao? Hell I'm ready for anything right now. Can't you undress quicker?"

He threw his bracers angrily across the room. "You are mentally unstable."

"So am I going to be disappointed? Or are you proportionate, big boy?" She giggled as he sneered at her.

"So you were Cao Cao's whore, were you?" He shot back.

"I believe mistress is the appropriate term. You know how it is. Make the boss happy-keep your job and your head."

"You wear the colors of Shu." He removed a few medals.

"Now, but I was with Wei until a few weeks ago. Let's just say you'd probably get a better reception then I would in that camp right now."

Lu Bu removed his breast plate and dropped it with a loud clang. "I doubt once Shu hears about this that they're going to be any more open-minded."

"Well you seem to be of the opinion that you're forcing yourself on me. So being the senior officer on this field of battle, your opinion is what matters." She sat up and looked at him as he took off some more ornamental armor. "Are you going to be ready sometime this decade?"

"Are all women in your country such whores?"

"Nope just the exports." She smiled endearingly.

"What exactly is it that Cao Cao wanted with _you_?" He asked curiously as he sat on the bed and tossed off his boots.

She watched his gaze turn to her and she seductively removed her belt. She was suddenly thankful she insisted that she take the uncomfortable chain belt instead of the leather. He let his eyes wander momentarily, lulled into a false security by her nonchalant conversation. Stealthily she wrapped the chain around his neck and she was on her knees behind him. She felt him stiffen and she put a bit more pressure on the chain. "This is how I kill best, my lord. This is what I used to be, but not anymore. This is why I no longer fight for Cao Cao. This is why I am banished from Rome. You have seen how I am not as practiced with my rapier as I should be, because my weapon choice up until most recently has been the favorite of an assassin." She let the chain drop into his lap and lifted his headpiece off as she stood up.

"And why did you not take your chance to kill me?"

"Because that life is behind me and you are a warrior. You deserve a good death, not one reserved for scum like Dong Zhou or Cao Cao." She placed his feathered headpiece on the dresser and turned back to him. She sat back down on the bed and awaited his next move.

He crept up the bed and knelt over her. His angry breath made the wisps of curls dance around her forehead. "You will regret that I'm sure."

"Probably, " She reached up and began to unbutton his shirt, "but right now I'm not exceptionally concerned about it."

Zhang Liao sat alone at the table thinking about the coming battle. He was not doing very well, since the squeals from Dong Zhou's chambers were exceptionally loud. He looked around for anyone he could take to bed with him. That servant girl was probably in the kitchen. Dammit, why was he always the odd man out?

Lu Bu lay naked and content staring at the ceiling as Cal nestled her head on his chest. She listened to the steady heartbeat and let her finger trace the muscles of his abdomen. "You're one hell of a man Lu Bu." She rolled off of him and searched for a comb to tame her now tussled hair.

"Why do you not fear me?" He asked as he put his arms behind his head.

"Because we are the same kind of monster." She braided her shoulder length hair and crawled back on the bed. Swinging her left leg over his torso she sat on his large chest. With concern she looked at the puncture wound she had created in his right shoulder. It looked healthy.

"Why, do you think that?"

"I see it in you, the same bloodlust that I see in the mirror. That thrill of defeating a man and watching his blood puddle around your feet. You can't wait to ride into battle to slaughter them can you? I long for it; in fact I dread the threat of peace. I see the recognition in your eyes now; you know what I'm talking about."

Lu Bu watched her silently and slowly ran his hand up to her breast as she spoke.

"But what makes us so despicable, my lord? What truly makes me understand how cold your heart is…." She looked at him and ran her hand through his hair and down his handsome face. "Is that we love to torture our victims first. You have your reputation that shakes a man's resolve and defeats him well before your halberd can. Then you toy with him, enjoying the humiliation knowing that he just wants you to finish him so that he can be released from his fear."

"How would you know? You have only seen me kill once."

"I'm not wrong, am I? You know how I know? Because I too thrive on the same thing. I may not have your presence, but I can get at them with words. I can tell them how I will peel their skin off or cut their balls out with a piece of shale. And when they are ready to break I will force them to fight, and as they make mistakes I will cut away at them piece by piece. I cannot hate you General, because I would have to hate myself."

He pulled her down into his aggressive kiss. "But what will you do with it?"

She watched his eyes suddenly get that glint of ambition, the same look that made her turn from Cao Cao. "I will help Lui Bei conquer this land."

"I will conquer this land for myself." He smirked, "So we are different after all."

"First my lord I will conquer you." She slid back and felt his erection behind her. Without loosing his stare she lifted up her hips and reached for him. The ambition faded and was replaced by arousal as she guided him into her.


	9. The Battle of Hu Lao Gate

Chapter 9

The Battle of Hu Lao Gate

Cal looked out the window at the approaching army. Lu Bu had left her here in his chambers three days ago, not to return. He was out there preparing for the defense of Hu Lao Gate. She knew that there were guards stationed outside the door, and she knew that she could easily defeat them. The odd thing was- Lu Bu knew that as well. It was not the escape from Dong Zhuo's castle that worried her. It was the way out of the gate that would be the difficult thing. So far she was planning on killing the guards and returning to the dining chamber where her rapier resided. Then back to Lu Bu's chambers where this window provided an excellent view of the stables. She would have to hurry, men were milling about everywhere. The door opening interrupted her thoughts.

"My lady." Diao Chan entered the room a whirl of glittering maces and flowing pink gown.

Cal turned and did not hide her surprise. This had to be the woman Lu Bu lusted for, she truly was beautiful. It was funny now that she thought about it. This country seemed to be filled with tons of petite beauties. "Lady Diao Chan, correct?"

"Lady Calpurnia you are correct." She sauntered over to her and pulled the Celestial blade from underneath her robes. "Go. Go back to where you belong and leave my man alone."

Cal looked at her and was genuinely surprised. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me, bitch. Lu Bu is mine. No one, especially not some filthy Roman whore, is going to share his bed while I'm suffering under Dong Zhou. Take your pathetic weapon and return to your weak little peasant army."

Cal took her weapon from the lady and strapped it onto her waist. "I have to admit, I was not expecting this. Have your man, Daio Chan, I have enjoyed him. He's all yours." She turned and leapt gracefully out the window into a pile of straw.

"I do not need the fool's mind cluttered with anything else." Chan said to herself.

---------------------

Lu Bu sat on Red Hare inside Hu Lao Gate waiting for the battering ram to break it down. Then he would destroy the vermin where they stood. The pounding of the ram echoed through the small city. His men watched nervously, there were so many of them waiting to swarm through the gates. Lu Bu's heart began to beat faster with excitement; he was very ready for them.

---------------

Lui Bei struck down another man and turned to wave his comrades on. "Quickly men we must protect the ram!" He galloped Hex Mark towards the siege weapon and could not help but wonder where Lu Bu was. Guan Yu rode up with Zhang Fei trailing behind him.

"This is going well." Zhang Fei said happily.

"We still have not seen any officers of any worth." Guan Yu reminded him.

"That is about to change." Lui Bei watched the ramp puncture the gate. Dust and debris flew everywhere and he though he saw a flash of gold armor through the opening before the rest of the gate crumbled around the ram.

-----------------

Lu Bu smiled as the head on the ram plowed through the wooden gate. His men involuntarily back up. With a slow and fearless motion he walked Red Hare into the dust cloud. But he sensed something behind him; looking back he saw a small grey blur approaching. Before he realized what it was it blew past him and towards the gate.

Cal turned to the general as she clung to Ares neck. She did not have the time to find a saddle or bridle and instead had to make do with an oversized halter and lead rope. It was not difficult to get the colt to make a dash for safety, however stopping him before he made his way back to Egypt was going to be another challenge. Hollering over her shoulder she yelled, "Thanks for everything! Don't surrender too quickly!"

Lu Bu growled, someone would have to pay for dereliction of duty. An escapee was unacceptable. He did not let Red Hare have his head, the stud wanted to chase the little grey Arab and he did not need that. Not now. Now he needed to cut the intruders down. He continued his slow and methodical advance, hardly able to contain his own excitement.

-------------------

Cal felt like Ares had hardly touched the ground; his unrestricted gallop was so smooth. She couldn't guide him through the crowds of men outside the gate as well as she would have liked, and a few allied men were trampled. Where would Lui Bei be? She looked around trying to make some sense of the madness, then she saw them. The three brothers.

Lui Bei cocked his head, "Is that who I think it is?"

Guan Yu sat up in the saddle, "Why yes it is. I told you she wasn't dead."

"But she is coming from the _enemy_ camp." Zhang Fei stated.

Cal breezed by the men, unable to pull Ares up. "My lord, sorry I am late!" Ares galloped on and she tried to angle the horse into a crevasse in the rocks, anything to stop him. As she turned the corner, towards the small gate where the green troops were emerging from, then a sweet voice hailed her.

"My lady! What a pleasant surprise." Zhao Yun tried to angle his horse in front of Ares who was tiring from his mile and a half sprint. "Can I be of assistance?"

"Always the gentleman…." She smiled genuinely as he grabbed the runaway colt's halter and pulled him up. "Do you know where I can find some extra tack?"

---------------------

Cal and Yun returned to Hu Lao Gate in time to watch Lui Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei attack Lu Bu. The city of Lou Yong was burning behind them and it provided an incredible backdrop to the most incredible battle she had seen. Lu Bu was holding his own against three of the finest warriors that the allies had. She felt guilty, but she did not want them to beat him.

"Cal! Oh thank god you're ok!" Shang ran over and jumped into her friends arms and hugged her tightly. "Where were you?"

Cal knew they were all thinking the same thing. "When I pursued Li Jue at Si Shui Gate Lu Bu knocked me unconscious and took me prisoner."

Shang gasped and looked her friend over. "Are you ok? Did he hurt you! Oh I hope they beat him, that fiend!"

The trio watched as Lu Bu slowly retreated from the Shu onslaught. "Not today it would seem." Yun watched Red Hare gallop away.

"Fear not. I will finish him. That dog will not escape me." Cao Cao had been watching as well. He looked to Cal, "How interesting that you remain amongst the living."

"Lord Cao Cao, I am glad to see you well." Cal said it so coldly Shang shivered next to her. "He has no army left, why do you insist on capturing him? Is it to make yourself feel like more of a man?"

"I did not say I would capture him, I said I will finish him. I will take that villainous head clean off and place it on a pike outside the emperor's palace. Then everyone will be reminded of what happens to traitors to the Han."

Cal watched the red speck vanish into the mountains and couldn't help but wonder if Cao Cao would truly be able to catch up to him. What would she do in this situation? The answer was easy, when it was her head that the legions were looking to take she ran. Self preservation was the prevailing thought. But Lu Bu wanted more then that, he wanted his own domain. Thus he would take a stand, and Cao Cao would not have to look too hard. She watched Cao Cao move off and saw Xiahou Dun move in behind him. Cao Cao was obviously telling him of her existence and she caught a glimmer of happiness on Dun's face. Maybe he did not hate her as much as she feared. Their eyes met and his smile faded. "Dun, why must we do this?" she asked to no one in particular.

"Please, go to him." Shang said, but then it was too late. He was riding off towards Lou Yong. "Why won't you just talk it out?"

"Some wounds are too deep, Shang." She turned and walked off.

-------------------------

"A fine victory." Belched Zhang Fei to his new drinking buddy and competitor, Xu Zhu.

"You can say that again!" Xu Zhu grabbed another barrel of wine to drink from.

Zhao Yun shook his head and moved over to another more intelligent campfire. He heard Shang's giggles and tried to avoid her but it was too late.

"Zhao Yun! Have you met Lu Meng?" Shang had the Wu general by the wrist and was pulling him after her.

"No, but I have heard many good things. It is an honor Lord Lu Meng."

"Meng stay here!" Shang ran off into the darkness.

"I'm in hell." The Wu general lamented. "I don't know why but she thinks she needs to play love connection now."

"At least she hasn't directed her affections toward you." He replied.

"You're Zhou Yu's favorite person right now." Meng chuckled, "Maybe Sun Ce will come and rescue us from his sister."

Shang came around the corner pulling a confused Calpurnia behind her. "Here," she pushed Cal into the general. "Meet Lu Meng. Meng this is Calpurnia, but we call her Cal."

Cal straightened up and smiled politely. "Nice to meet you, sir."

"My lady." Meng smiled uncomfortably.

"Hey! You two should have some time to talk, let's get some wine Lord Zhao." She wrapped her arm around the Shu general's and pulled him away.

"Sometimes that girl hits this camp like a tornado and we're all left wondering what just happened." Cal backed up to a more comfortable distance.

"She means well." Meng shrugged.

"Well, while she's tormenting Yun, would you like to join us for some tea, chow mein and bullshiting?" She waved towards the small campfire.

"Sounds good. I'm probably going to have to drag her home anyhow. Sun Jian will kill me if he finds out I left her here to harass Zhao Yun."

"He deserves it." She sat down on her crate and introduced the members of the group. "Lu Meng, this is Guan Yu and Xu Huang."

"Welcome, sit please." Guan Yu waved to a log.

"A pleasure to meet you. I was very impressed with your fight earlier today. I don't think I've ever seen anything like that before." Meng sat down and took the tea Cal handed him.

"Wish I would have got him though…."Guan Yu trailed off, every time they talked about Lu Bu since the battle Cal stared off into the fire. "Now young lady, I do believe you were trying to avoid telling us about your stay at Lou Yong."

"I told you, he knocked me unconscious, I woke up in Dong Zhou's house. We fought a bit, he kicked my ass and we had some cashew chicken. Now that was damn fine chicken. Do you think we can put that on the menu?"

"This is useless." Yu threw his tea cup across the camp. "You're impossible."

"Well I can ask Lu Bu when we catch him." Xu Huang offered. "I doubt his story will revolve around cashew chicken."

"You've found him?" Cal asked curiously.

"Yes, he's in Xia Pi with Zhang Liao and Diao Chan. Cao Cao plans to march tomorrow." Huang smiled.

"Then I'm coming with you." She said quietly.

"Are you changing sides again?" Guan Yu huffed.

"No, I just want to be there." She said hesitantly.

"I don't think it will be a very pretty sight." Lu Meng warned. "Cao Cao's determined to take his head."

"Now that's something she's definitely qualified for!" Zhao Yun pushed Cal over on the box so that he could sit somewhere Shang could not.

"I need to speak with Lord Lui Bei." She stood up and opened up a space for Shang to happily jump into. Quickly she disappeared.

"What's up with her?" Shang asked. "Really Meng she's usually a lot happier and funnier. Probably still bummed out by the whole Xiahou Dun thing, that's all"

"I'm sorry Lady Sun, Dun is as unwilling to speak of it as Cal is. I'm afraid they will just have to work it out themselves." Xu Huang smiled sympathetically. He had seen how close they were before, and it truly bothered him too. But he knew how dedicated Dun was to his cousin and he suspected the greatest offense was that she did not love their lord as he did. Cao Cao did not call him his most trusted officer for nothing.

--------------------

"My lord, can I speak with you?" Cal walked up as Lui Bei was finishing a chat with Sun Jian. "Ah, when you have a chance."

Sun Jian bowed to her, "Lady Calpurnia, I do hope my daughter has not tried to push Lu Meng and you together. I meant to warn you before."

"Actually my lord, she just pushed me into him. It's fine, she's only trying to be nice and no one was offended. As an added bonus, she tormented Zhao Yun a little more. That more then makes up for any discomfort on my part."

"Actually while you are here, I was wondering…" Sun Jian hesitated and looked to Lui Bei for approval.

"You know in my country when powerful men start whispering and giving secret nods it usually means the Emperor is going to be stabbed on the floor of the senate." Cal tried to lighten the mood.

"We have been discussing someone that is rather close to you." Lui Bei sat down because he felt like he was blushing.

"Lord Lui Bei and I have been discussing the possibility of a marriage….between him and my daughter."

Cal was shocked; she did not see this coming at all. "Oh. And you want to know what I think?"

"You are her closest friend." Sun Jian waited for her response.

"Well. I honestly don't know what she'll think; she's so wrapped up in her Zhao Yun infatuation right now. But if you want to know my opinion….Lord Sun Jian you could not find a better man for your daughter."

Lui Bei looked up at her and noticed the sincerity in her voice. "Thank you…"

"I will do whatever I can to help her. I don't think she's really in the marriage state of mind, she's still such a child."

"You are both the same age though." Sun Jian pointed out.

"I never had the privilege of growing up. I had to be an adult as soon as my parents were killed. She's still got a lot to learn. But have no fear; I will be there for her. We both will." She nodded to Lui Bei.

"That is what I wanted to hear. Please let me be the one to break the news to her." Sun Jian bowed and left.

"Thank you again." Lui Bei was touched by her statements. "What was it you wanted to speak to me about?"

"My lord, I know how bad this will sound but hear me out."

"I always do, please sit."

"Cao Cao is marching to Xia Pi to execute Lu Bu. I can't let him do that, I can't let that man be cut down for following the orders of his lord."

"Go on."

Cal stood up and began to pace. "If I can I have to prevent him from murdering him, he doesn't deserve to die like that. He is a warrior not a villain."

Lui Bei watched her pace, "Up until a few weeks ago you had never heard of him, now you will risk your life to protect his honor? What exactly happened at Luo Yong?"

"He had many chances to kill me….and I him. But there was an understanding. We are the same in many ways my lord. I can not explain it to someone who does not thirst for the blood of his enemy."

"You were chased out of Rome in a similar way, weren't you?"

"I was not chased, I was being hunted. The only difference is that I ran away and he will stand with his officers to fight. That is much more honorable then my actions. Cao Cao wants to behead him, and they were going to crucify me. I cannot stand by and let it happen to someone else."

"Cal, there is something I haven't told anyone yet."

"Sir?"

"We will be joining Cao Cao on his march to Xia Pi."


	10. The Battle of Xia Pi

Chapter 10

The Battle of Xia Pi

"You're awfully quiet." Guan Yu observed.

"I talk, you complain. I'm quiet, you complain." Cal sat hunched over in the saddle, she wasn't in the mood.

"He is not a good man, no matter what he led you to believe." Guan Yu took a chance. He suspected there was a lot more to the Luo Yong incident then she would care to divulge.

"Yu, it is because he is not a good man that I have a problem with this." She kicked Ares into a canter to get away from him.

"My lady!" the small bodyguard called out in frustration.

----------------------

The combined armies of Wei and Shu camped outside the castle of Xia Pi. Inside Lu Bu waited with his mistress and his advisor. Chen Gong stressed the importance of sticking to the strategy he had devised and Lu Bu waited. But his patience was growing thin.

"My lord." Diao Chan wrapped her arms around his waist.

"Chan, if this battle does not go well…..I want you to leave by carriage to the west. Wait for me for four days at Yuan Shu's home, then move on."

Chan smiled but hid her joy from her lover. She forced out tears, "But my darling….my love, Bu."

"Chan, you cannot fall into the hands of Cao Cao. My soul cannot rest if that should happen."

------------------------

The officers of the allied forces waited for the war council to begin. Several men chatted back and forth happily between clans. Slowly Zhen Ji strode through the officers, each of then giving her an appreciative look. She was a lioness working her way through the pride before a hunt. Ji just needed to locate her victim.

"Now I recall you being a lot happier when you were fighting with us." A familiar gruff voice came from the shadows of the night.

Cal jumped up off her barrel, "Ren?"

"So you do remember me huh?" he smiled at his former comrade.

"You don't hate me?" she asked pleadingly.

"Hell, kid, bygones."

She wrapped her arms around his thick neck and kissed his cheek. "I'm so glad."

"Well if I knew I'd get this kind of reception I would have said 'Hi' at Si Shui." He pushed her away a second. "Let me look at you, I hardly recognize what they've done to you."

"Now, Lord Cao Ren." Guan Yu corrected him, "that is a Sun Shang Xiang makeover."

"Wow. That little tomboy did a nice job." Ren nodded and scruffed up her hair. "Too bad I know you haven't cleaned up you language any to match your new appearance."

"That would be nothing short of a miracle." Yu snorted.

"Now I'll have you know it was my smart ass remarks that got Lu Bu to spare my life. Thank you very much."

"Don't worry kid; we'll take care of that son of a bitch tomorrow." Ren smiled.

"Why do you all hate him so much?" She asked and sat down beside Yu again.

"Why you don't is the question." Yu replied.

Zhen Ji stopped in from of then and tapped her flute in her hand. "So I finally find you."

"Oh hell Ji, not this now." Ren growled.

"Why not?" Cal stood up and rested her hand on the hilt of her rapier. "She likes to be beaten, remember?"

"Not now. We must not have your petty differences ruining the collaboration on this battle." Yu pulled her by her belt and sat Cal back down.

"Ji, go find something to do will you? No catfights, not while I'm here."

"As you wish." She sauntered away.

"Ren, what about Dun?" Cal asked.

"Err….well you know him he's always so damned moody anyway."

"No he's not. Just tell me, is he well? Cao didn't take it out on him did he?"

"No, actually our cousin was really quite supportive. He's definitely the moody one though."

"Generals, please your attention." Cao Cao's voice boomed. "We have very little need for strategy. Lu Bu is a caged animal. We will attack him until he comes out and when he does we will destroy him. For the glory of the Han….."

---------------  
The next day:

"Charge the castle dammit!" Xiahou Dun turned towards his bodyguards at the very moment an enemy archer launched his arrow. He felt the impact and dropped to one knee.

"My lord! Are you hurt?" the lead guard raced to his charge and gasped as Dun lifted his face towards him. "Your eye…."

"I was born with it…" He pulled the arrow out and along with it came his left eye. "And it will remain a part of me." He bit the bleeding eyeball off the broad head and swallowed it.

"Take this my lord." Zhen Ji dismounted and took her scarf off and wrapped it around his head covering his eye.

"Lady Ji, thank you."

"Let us make him pay for this…." Ji mounted her horse again. "Forward guards!"

----------------------

Zhang Liao galloped into the castle and found Lu Bu by the vast quantities of men flying through the air. "General, the Lady Chan had escaped successfully!"

Lu Bu looked at his only remaining officer. "Liao….If you want to…"

"No, I stay by you my lord. Until the end."

"WHO ELSE SEEKS DEATH!?!" Lu Bu roared as he launched himself into the crowds of men.

-------------------------

"Such a pity that he must die, do you not agree Dian Wei?" Cao Cao leaned over his horse's neck.

"No."

"I thought you'd say that. Come let us subdue this animal. Oh and Wei?"

"Sir?"

"Make sure we take him alive. I want him to see his death coming."

---------------------------

Calpurnia watched as a dozen allied officers rushed to attack Lu Bu. Xiahou Yuan and Cao Ren had Zhang Liao pinned in a corner and very near defeating him. "Ares, they don't need us." She turned the little Arab away from the castle and heard a faint nicker. Was that a spot of red on that tiny island? Could that be Red Hare? "Dear god, he hid his horse." She suddenly felt her heart drop. She would have done the same thing for hers. She scratched his shoulder and pulled him towards the bridge. "Let's go get him before someone else does."

"Oh my lady, not again! Please wait for us!" The head guard lamented

--------------------

The officers crowded around him in a circle, the mighty Lu Bu now a prisoner at their mercy. Even kneeling there, hands tied behind his back, Sky Scorcher at his knees in front of him, he did not look defeated. The man looked at Cao Cao furiously as he approached.

"This day has been a long time coming." The Wei ruler spit on Lu Bu's face. "You pig."

Lui Bei watched Cao Cao in silence. He remembered Cal's words; a warrior did not deserve to die this way. "Cao Cao, if you are going to execute him, then execute him. Do not degrade him any further. I will not allow it."

"Fine. If it eases your conscience Lui Bei." He turned to his officers and scanned their faces. "Xiahou Dun, I believe this privilege is yours. After all you have lost your eye because of this man."

"My pleasure." Dun drew his scimitar and approached the menacing man.

"NOOO!" Calpurnia raced up on Red Hare. She had heard the cheers when she was trying to catch the fire red steed and knew it was close to the end. After she caught him, she tried to lead him while riding Ares, but the two stallions refused to cooperate. Out of frustration she tied Ares to a fence and mounted Red Hare. He was after all supposed to be fast and she couldn't take the chance leaving him out in the open for anyone. Ares would be safe, he had a nasty habit of kicking at people behind him and no one really appreciated the tiny Arab anyhow. Now she was there-with the entire army watching her. She slid off the stunning horse and drew her rapier taking position in front of Lu Bu. "You will have to go through me first."

Lui Bei gasped and grabbed Guan Yu's arm. "Is this really happening Yu, tell me I'm not seeing this."

"I wish I could say that…..we should have sent her with Sun Jian." Guan Yu watched as the two officers stared each other down.

"You fool, what are you doing now?" Dun hollered.

"I'm not going to let you murder him!" she screamed back.

Cao Cao stepped back to stand next to Dian Wei. "Well I did not anticipate this."

"I hope he finishes her, then rips off Lu Bu's head with her blood still on the blade." Dian Wei seethed with hatred for her.

"Get out of the way." Dun screamed

"Get me out of the way. If you dare." She snapped back. She was ready for his attack; he always started with a charge and two slashes. And it was easily defended. She couldn't believe it was coming to this, fighting Dun. And what the hell was wrong with his eye?

"How dare you challenge me you ingrate!" he fought off her two slashes and tried to launch her into the air. "My blade shall deal with you!"

"You should improve your attack scheme Dun, you are too predictable." She moved away from his weak launch attempt and tried to smack his weapon from his hands. Was that blood on his cheek running out of his eye?

"Predictable? Me? You're the one making the worst possible decision you can! Protecting the one man more worthy of death then even you!" He spun 360 degrees hoping to throw her out of the way.

She blocked the attack and countered, "If I'm so abominable then maybe you should organize a mob to hunt me down as well!" She lunged at him.

"I believe that's already been done, or have you forgotten about your sordid past so that you can be the righteous one today?" he blocked her attack and they were forced into a deadlock.

"I should have cut you down when I first saw you."

"You would have died back on that pathetic dirt road if you had tried." She hissed

"And the irony of it all is that you come here to protect the man that took my eye with the blade I gave you. You little bitch."

"Cry me a fucking river! You actually expected to come out of this unscathed? Please." She kicked him away with a spinning kick she learned from Shang. With a flick of the wrist she opened up a small slice on his cheek. "There's one from me, to remember the good times."

Dun felt the blood drip down to his chin and he watched it hit the ground. "So what is it really? Did you miss how you used to get it from my cousin and have to relive it with someone else? The opportunity arose and you couldn't wait to let the mighty Lu Bu take you and fuck you like his little captive, could you? Can't find anyone to do you like you deserve in the virtuous little Shu camp can you? I doubt they'd even lay a finger on you, you slut."

"You know what? I did let him fuck me. And I don't regret it, because he didn't treat me like shit. For two years you knew what your cousin was doing to me but you did nothing! Some friend you turned out to be, that son of a bitch beat me and you left the building so you would have to hear me cry. Why don't you step out of the shadows of Cao Cao, Xiahou Dun, and look at something with your own eyes. I stand before you today to protect this man because I won't let him be slaughtered. Not because of anything else." She stepped back and slashed her rapier through the air in front of her. She addressed the crowd, "You all fear him so much that you'll let your own principles be trampled in the rush to behead him. Look at me! Why am I the only one with enough honor to defend his right to die like a man? And you call _me_ a barbarian!" She turned to Lu Bu whose steady gaze gave her the confidence to do what she knew was right. She leaned around him and sliced the ropes that bound his hands. "Go."

He stood up picking up his halberd and looked at the crowd around him. "They'll cut you down in my place."

"Let them try." She whipped around to face Dun again. She raised her rapier and pointed it at him. Without turning to the giant behind her she said, "Lu Bu, get on your horse and ride out of here."

"You'll regret this I'm sure." He mounted Red Hare and turned to the west.

"Why should anything change? Go, before it is too late." She heard the pounding hooves and watched the faces of the officers around her. Dun's eye remained fixed on her.

"All this bloodshed for nothing. You make me sick." He sheathed his weapon and marched out of the castle.

Cao Cao began to clap. "Quite a show. Maybe you should have rode off into the sunset with him."

"Burn in hell." She whipped her weapon back into the scabbard and turned back to the south, where Ares waited.

------------------

Cal maneuvered Ares around a small barricade and looked up at the new road block that had materialized. The men of Shu: Lui Bei, Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun all were waiting for her. They sat ready on their horses. She stopped Ares and waited for their verdict.

"It's about time you showed your face." Guan Yu sighed. "I was beginning to think someone got a hold of you before we had to chance to be all gallant and act as your personal bodyguards."

"Why aren't you mad?" she asked quizzically and looked over all their faces.

"Why you aren't ashamed of us is the better question." Lui Bei replied.

"If you want me to go, I'll understand." She said, ready to cry.

"Come our naughty little hero; let us return to nowhere in particular." Zhao Yun winked.

"My only question is, if you're such a slut, why not any of us?" Zhang Fei asked. "Come on now. Keep it in the right dynasty at least!"

"Let us go now. There is a strategist that we have to woo." Lui Bei turned to the south.

"Well let this little lady have her way with him, he won't be able to refuse you then." Fei jibbed and waved the girl toward them.

"You're turning out to be somewhat virtuous after all Calpurnia." Guan Yu pinched her cheek as she rode between them. "Our baby girl's growing up."

"If we can clean up your vocabulary and fit you for a chastity belt, we could very possibly snare Lu Meng into a marriage." Zhao Yun laughed.

"That poor man. The only reason that Shang chose him as the perfect match for me is because he doesn't shave on a regular basis." She tossed a look over her shoulder at Xia Pi.

"Forget about them. You've got us and that's all anyone really needs." Yu patted her head. "Although it would have been nice if you hadn't given Red Hare back."


	11. The Courting of Zhuge Liang

Thanks for the review, it's a welcome boost to my self-esteem. :-)   
Sorry this chapter is short, but Zhuge Liang is relatively annoying and I'd rather rush our heroes back into battle.....

Chapter 11

The Courting of Zhuge Liang

"Why do we need a strategist again?" Zhang Fei queried as he sat on the ground.

"If that's what Lord Lei Bei wants, then we should support him." Guan Yu sighed; he himself was a little hurt by Bei's insistence.

"We've done fine so far." Fei sneered.

"We haven't been at war with Cao Cao." Zhao Yun was toying with his spear.

"Thanks to me and my conscience." Cal kicked a rock.

"He would have been after us whether you screwed that up or not." Fei observed. "He's going to be hunting us now."

"Cao Cao always seemed bothered by Lui Bei. He seeks to eliminate him before he can become more of a problem." Cal sighed.

"So we should be acquiring real officers, not strategists." Guan Yu crossed his arms.

-----------------

"Yes, Lord Lui Bei, I will join you." Zhuge Liang stood up and straightened his robe. "As will my wife, Yue Ying."

"I am greatly honored, Master Liang." Lui Bei smiled excitedly; it was all coming together now.

"I would like to meet your officers. The earlier we are introduced, the easier it will be for all of us." Liang began to make his way for the door, before the Shu leader could answer.

"Of course."

--------------------

"How long is this really going to take?" Cal huffed and scratched her back with a stick.

"Strategists seem to believe the world will stop just for them." Guan Yu lean up against a tree in disgust.

The door opened and Zhuge Liang stepped out into the sun. He shielded his eyes with his war fan and stepped outside. He looked at the small group before him and could instantly see the discord growing.

Lui Bei followed the man almost instantly. "Master Liang, these are my officers. My sworn brothers: Guan Yu and Zhang Fei. My trusted spear, Zhao Yun and my Roman Legionnaire, Quinirius Calpurnia."

Liang looked around, "Is that all?"

"They each are worth at least three of Wei's generals."

"That is wishful thinking at best." Liang fanned himself. "Good thing you have me now."

"How dare you insult these men like that you son of a…" Cal's words were lost into Yun's hand.

"Don't mind her." Yun smiled trying to pass it off as nothing.

Cockily Liang walked past Fei and Yu to stare at the girl. "And what exactly are _you_ doing with these respected warriors?"

Yun lifted his hand from her mouth and waited. This was going to be bad.

"Taking offense at your disrespectful tone." She tossed her back scratching stick across the small dirt road.

Liang fanned himself angrily. "What do you know of respect?"

Lui Bei maneuvered himself between the two. "Please, we are one army now. Let us not bicker needlessly amongst ourselves for such a minor misunderstanding."

"What exactly does your name mean? Such an odd name deserves an explanation."

"Quirinus is a small time war god and also the deity form of Romulus who founded Rome."

"How regal. Well I'm sure there is some use for you."

------------------

"If that bastard flicks that fan in my direction the wrong way I'll be planting it in his pretentious pasty little ass." Cal watched Lui Bei walk away with his new acquisition.

"I'll hold him down for you." Yu grinned with the thought

"Why do we need him?" Fei asked

"We have to be supportive, if only for our lord's sake." Yun plead.

"Let him have his airs." Fei smiled, "If his strategies fail we'll be executing him."

"Finally an execution Cal won't try and prevent." Yu looked down at her.

------------------

"Please sit and enjoy my wife's cooking." Liang sat down at the head of the table, causing the disgruntled officers to shoot each other looks.

"You continue to honor us, Master Liang." Lui Bei was good at kissing ass.

"What are those?" Cal peered at small red seeded balls on a plate.

"Sesame rice balls." Yue Ying smiled, "And here is the lo mein."

"Eat the rice ball." Yu told his little friend. "If you thought you liked cashew chicken, you won't stop telling the world about those."

"Wow. This is the best thing I have _ever_ tasted!"

-----------------

"Have you always had that weapon?" Cal asked the quietly reflective Yue Ying

"My scythe, yes. I grew up a farmer's daughter; it was something I grew up using. I altered it a little and it became the perfect weapon."

"Interesting."

"How did you end up so far from home?" she asked politely

"Well I used to have a rather nasty little job and it got me in a little bit of hot water."

Ying smiled, "Oh, what did you do for a living?"

"I killed people." Cal answered.

"Ah. As in executions?"

"Well yes, I suppose you can say that. Just very secret unpublicized executions."

"Oh." Ying suddenly understood. "They let women do that?"

"It's best that the deed is done by the person you least expect." Cal looked around, more rice patties.

"Did your parents raise you to be in that field?"

"No, actually. My parents were killed by barbarians when I was young. I was picked up by the local Roman patrols after they chased off the raiders. There was nothing left of the village, just charred remains. I hid in a creek bed and saw everything and that's what made me immune to suffering and bloodshed. It also enabled me to understand a new emotion called hate. The commander of the detachment was Octavian Galleus, or Galleus Octavian to you. He took me in and started to train me for this idea had. The beginnings of a small group of assassins that the army controlled. These specialists, as he called them, would be used to eliminate enemy commanders, retract information and create overall havoc if needed. Then someone a little higher up the ranks got wind of his idea and he was promoted. He returned to Rome to train and command a 'specialist' unit. Eventually we were doing everyone's dirty work. He even named me, since I was too young to remember my actual name. Quinirius so that I would be blessed by the God himself and Calpurnia after the wife of Julius Caesar."

"Caesar?"

"Rome's greatest emperor." Cal felt the presence of another person long before she saw him. "We're being followed."

"Yes. Don't worry it's just Pang Tong." She looked away unconcerned. "I would like to hear more about Rome, I have heard a lot from the traders. Is it true about those magnificent buildings that hold thousands?"

"Tens of thousands. Pang who?" Cal turned and looked back into the forest.

"Pang Tong, he's Liang's classmate. He's a bit weird but a very fun man to be around. Isn't that right Tong?"

A giggle erupted from the woods and birds scattered. "You are too kind my lady."

As the man came out of the woods, Cal felt little relief. He was camouflaged very well and it was hard to pick him up against the background of the forest. But then he giggled some more and approached them. Suddenly she couldn't help but laugh, "What the hell are you?"

"A bit more knowledgeable about you then you are of me."

"Fantastic a riddler." She shook her head.


	12. The Road to Bo Wan Po

Chapter 12

The Road to Bo Wan Po

Lui Bei excused himself from the tent figuring the arguing Pang Tong and Zhuge Liang were in no need of his opinion. Bei looked around the camp at his small army and began to worry. His officers were discontent, his new strategist was more interested in pissing off his former classmate then planning and he was exhausted. The journey from Xia Pi had been long and arduous. He wanted more then anything to take moment to himself and go fishing. The calm cool water running over his bare feet, the relaxing murmur of the running water and the fresh fish pan friend in butter. He was snapped out of his daydream by the appearance of a Wu bodyguard.

"Lord Lui Bei, I have a letter for you from Lady Sun." she handed the letter to him and was off, heading back home as quickly as she came.

Lui Bei opened the sealed envelope and noticed the girlish handwriting. Maybe this would be what he needed to ease his mind.

--------------

"Tong, why are you here anyway?" Liang threw the book across the room.

"I was afraid you'd give strategists a bad name. Hey looks like I was right." Pang Tong squatted on his chair

"_I_ was recruited by Lui Bei, not _you_. Did he visit you three times and beg you to join him? No. It was _me_, not _you_."

"So what? You're an ass. You've already pissed off everyone in Shu. I'm here because I think Lui Bei will need an extra hand."

Liang fanned himself angrily. "Just remember I am the senior strategist, so don't get any ideas."

"Someone has to have ideas."

---------------------

"My lord, how are you doing? You look distraught." Cal walked up to her leader.

"My day is not going well, dear."

"Nor mine. I've been doing so well with my archery practice our entire army has taken shelter under crates. I can't say I'm doing so badly, I did hit a bag. It just happened to be a 50 lb bag of long grain rice and the puncture allowed it all to drain out into the main horse trough."

"Well, mine started off with Guan Yu cursing at me because he's offended that I was not satisfied with him as a strategist. Then Zhang Fei got mad because I asked him to refrain from drinking before the battle. Zhao Yun is sulking since I will not play chess with him because Liang keeps roping me into a game with him. Zhuge Liang is irritated that I accepted Pang Tong's invitation to join us and his wife thinks I hate her cooking because I wasn't hungry when they offered us dinner. Pang Tong brought his harem with him and kept my bodyguards up all night with the noise, so they're complaining. And to make everything better I received a letter from Sun Shang Xiang."

"I'm guessing she wasn't happy with her father's surprise."

"Not happy?" Lui Bei opened the letter. "Do the words, 'pervert', 'ghastly old man', 'liar', 'gold-digger', 'pauper' and 'senile' sound like they come from a love letter?"

"I'll set her straight when we speak next." Cal tried to give him a reassuring smile.

"If we make it that far. Honestly I don't see how we can go against Cao Cao so disheveled. Everyone is moody, angry or tired."

"Sir, I think you're doing a great job." Cal looked up curiously. The men were getting out of the way for a rider. Who could be coming from that direction? Suddenly the shining gold and flaming red registered in her mind. "And I do believe _my_ day just became worse then yours."

Lui Bei turned to see a lone Lu Bu riding up. "General, what an unexpected surprise."

"Looks like you need a hand."

"Are you offering to assist us?" Lui Bei asked incredulously.

"I've heard a lot about the virtuous Lui Bei, I thought I might find out for myself."

"Otherwise known as I have nowhere else to go." Cal was skeptical.

"That too."

-----------------------

"Why are you really here?" Cal snapped at the weary Lu Bu.

"Don't you ever shut up?"

"No. But the sooner you answer my questions, the sooner I storm out of your tent in disgust from your answers."

"Fine, Diao Chan was not waiting for me"

"Ok. So what?" Cal didn't care.

"I made sure she escaped safely, set up a rendezvous, and told her to give me time to show up. She instead unhitched the horse from the carriage and rode in the opposite direction." Lu Bu sat down tired.

"But she got so pissed at me for touching you. She cussed me out and helped me escape so that she wouldn't have to share you."

"Then Dong Zhou was killed and I became the only one between her and home. She played us both."

Cal looked at him, he was pained by this. "Sorry."

"So I am here now to see if this Lui Bei is tolerable. I have no army anymore, no officers. I need to join someone until I can raise a new force."

"Still aiming to take over the world?"

"Yes. Still trying to save it?"

-------------------

"Well, finally some good news!" Zhuge Liang tented his hands and grinned.

"He's not pissed about Lu Bu being here?" Cal asked Yue Ying who sat quietly in the corner with her.

"No, he is thrilled at the prospect of having him."

"Everyone else here is suspicious at the very least and he's happy?" Cal was puzzled by him.

"He's suspicious, but he won't let an opportunity pass. He'll make sure Shu gets what it can out of him."

"And how does he plan to do this?" Cal put her head in her hands and watched the events unfold.

"We will probably be within range of Bo Wan Po within two days. It is a very fortunate turn of events that has leads Lu Bu to us. We are thankful for your presence.

"Oh yes, inflating his ego. That should do it." Cal got up to leave.

"Do you mind if I come with you? I need some practice too." Ying smiled.

"How did you know I was heading to the training grounds?"

"A good guess."

----------

"So what's with you and Liang?" Cal asked as she sparred with Ying.

"He didn't want to repress my love for learning. He even promised to teach me what he knew, which he has come through on. Liang told me we'd always be equals, and I leapt at the chance."

"You're happy with him?" Cal was skeptical

"For the most part yes. I get to go places, learn about strategy and most importantly fight. It was my only chance to remain free to accumulate knowledge."

Cal was thinking about it and almost let Ying sweep her feet out from underneath her. "Sounds great."

"Yeah, but there are times I wish I had a husband, not just a teacher."

"So you two don't screw?" Cal smiled apologetically. "Sorry, I didn't want that to come out that way. Usually I'm just one of the guys."

"That's ok. We don't have the typical relationship, but the times that I think about that are few."

"Ha!" A cocky shout came from the fence. "No wonder you're so bad with your rapier, you don't even practice right." Lu Bu taunted.

"Shouldn't you be off gutting an innocent private or something?" Cal growled as she blocked the other woman's blow.

"Shouldn't you be fighting instead of dancing with weapons?" He hollered back.

"I'll dance my blade right into your empty heart." Under her breathe she said to Ying, "Why I helped him I'll never know."

"Come, let me show you what practice means." He jumped the fence and walked over to the two women.

"You're intruding." Cal sneered.

"Lady Yue, mind if I cut in?"

"Uhh…" Ying smiled politely and shifted her eyes. She was genuinely scared to be near him. "No, not at all."

"I liked you better at Luo Yong, you were more menacing. Looks like loosing your woman has made you less of a man." Cal waved her rapier at him.

"Ha. Just keep barking bitch." He launched into a spin attack.

"Is that the best you can do?" Cal blocked his attack and launched into a running stab.

"At least you're actually fighting now. This is the way really warriors practice." He caught her in the ribs with the shaft of his halberd and threw her into the fence. The bottom rail of the fence splintered from the impact. "Pity you still aren't worth my time."

"Tossing your opponent does not mean you have won." She stood and winced. She looked around and noticed half the Shu army was watching the 'training' session. Guan Yu gave her an encouraging look. _I'm going to get my ass kicked and everyone's going to be watching._ She took out her dagger and held it in her left hand for use as a shield. She charged and slashed at him.

"How am I ever going to defeat such a mighty warrior especially now that she's got two terrifying weapons?" Lu Bu mocked her.

"You son of a bitch. " Cal screamed out of frustration, she couldn't penetrate his defenses. He was too good.

"Awww, poor little girl." He lifted her into the air, jumped up and slammed her back into the ground with the halberd. She bounced once as she hit the ground and he made a show of putting the Sky Scorcher at her throat. "Why does this seem so familiar?"

"One of these days Lu Bu, I will have you at my mercy. And believe me; you will not see it coming."

"A day when you actually present a challenge? Unthinkable." He set his weapon at rest and grinned. "And I thought you might be better once you had a chance to train against pole arms. I know the Shu camp is full of those. I guess they just can't train a decent officer."

"You joined us, asshole, you just insulted your own army." She sat up and contemplated attacking him again, but he was waiting for it. He smiled down at her, knowing her thoughts-knowing she hated him for being better than her.

"They can handle themselves, you can't. Why don't you just give up on that gift your boyfriend gave you and find something you can fight with."

"I'm glad I saved your ass at Xia Pi." She stood and dusted herself off. "That way I can be the one to take your head."

"Not with that sword you won't. Not until you learn how to handle it." He walked off laughing. "And no one is going to waste their time teaching you how to do that."

"I will." Lui Bei ducked under the portion of the fence where the bottom rail had been knocked off. "You need a training partner, one who will fight you with your own class of weapon."

"You don't have that much time." Lu Bu left the training grounds.

"Sir, that's going to set you up for disappointment. I'm only good with weapons of my trade." Cal sheathed the rapier and took it off her sword belt. "It's too good for me anyway."

"No." He wrapped his hands over hers. "This is a good choice for you. Xiahou Dun knows what he is doing. You have the speed to make it work; you just need to practice with it more. You need to make it an extension of your arm. Your sword needs to be where you want it before you even know you want it there.

Come, let us practice now, Zhuge Liang is giving me a headache anyway."

--------------

"You look like shit." Zhang Fei pushed a bowl of wonton soup towards the achy Calpurnia.

"Fei, you have the power of observation too? Whoa." Cal stared at the soup, too tired to eat.

"Maybe you should let up on the practicing; it's becoming a bit obsessive." Zhao Yun rubbed her shoulders from behind.

"_Nugae_." (L. Nonsense) She was so tired she didn't even realize she had slipped back into Latin.

"You won't do anyone any good if you fall asleep on your horse in the middle of battle." Fei commented.

"Here, have some tea. It will make you feel better." Pang Tong handed the cup to her. "Drink, for Pang Tong."

"Sure."

"Is it true that strategist is going to give Lu Bu a unit to command?" Fei asked Tong.

"Yes, indeed it is." Tong answered

"We must be very aware of our lord's whereabouts. I am very uneasy with a new strategist and a new, questionable, general." Yun let go of Cal's shoulders and sat down.

"But I am a new strategist." Pang Tong waved his staff back and forth.

"But you're weird. We like weird." Cal said groggily. She furrowed her eyebrows and looked at the bizarre man in front of her. "You bast…." Her head smacked against the table as she entered a drug induced sleep.

"You'll feel better tonight." Tong walked around the other side of the table, threw the girl over his shoulder and left the tent.

"Because you're sneaky. We like that." Fei laughed.

------------

Cal lifted her head up and tried to move. She smelled Pang Tong, he had an unmistakable scent. Looking around she realized she smelled him because it was in his tent where she lay, buried in pillows.

"Awake huh?" Tong looked over at her.

"Bastard."

"You needed rest. I looked after the need you were ignoring."

She looked around. "God your tent looks like a whorehouse."

"It is. Well a roaming harem if you will." Pang Tong was very proud of his collection of concubines.

She sniffed her hair and looked around at the pillows. Cautiously she sniffed them. It was the same scent, the smell of sex. "You do it on these pillows don't you?"

"I'm really not picky, but the majority of the time, yes."

Cal jumped up. "I need to take a bath."

"You certainly don't find the act offensive do you?" Tong giggled in his odd little way.

"Not when I'm involved, however the thought of rolling in a pile of concubines is a bit noxious. Oh god I stink of concubines!" She turned and left. Ares was close by and sniffed at her. He raised his lip appreciative of the smell. "No." She admonished him and ran to the river.

-----------------

"I really don't care who he is, the man doesn't have the right to push us aside like this." Fei slammed his fist into the river, imagining Zhuge Liang's face being there.

"We let him do whatever he does, and then we string him up when it fails." Guan Yu submerged and popped up again, clear of soap. His bodyguard tossed him a small jar of shampoo and he began to wash his beard.

Cal ran up to the river and dove in. She poked her head out of the river a few feet from both of the boys. "Soap please."

"You know this is a somewhat restricted area at the moment." Yu said as he worked the sweet smelling shampoo into his long beard.

"I've been asleep in Pang Tong's pillows. Do you know what happens on a daily basis on, in, under those pillows? Huh, here smell my hair it might tip you off!" She began to scrub the soap bar into her hair.

"Give me that." Yu grabbed the soap and pushed her head back underwater. When she emerged again he put a lump of his special shampoo on her head. "Now that is for hair. No wonder your hair's always dull."

"What is this?" She started to scrub it into her head. "And why do you know so much about hair care products?"

"I like to look good." Yu continued his cleaning.

"So you do realize it's looked down upon in this country to bathe in public with men, right?" Fei asked.

"Yeah, is there a country where it isn't? I don't care if you're naked, everything that matters is underwater. Besides you never wear a shirt anyway."

"Just asking." Fei washed his armpits again.

"But I will take this opportunity to say that you have really nice tits, Fei."

"I'm surprised no one's executed you yet." He laughed.

"Well I've still got my clothes on, so what do I care really?"

"You realize you'll have to wash your clothes to get the smell out right?" Yu asked.

"Dammit." She turned back to the beach and dunked herself before walking back to her tent.

------------------

Pang Tong sniffed at Cal as he passed her at dinner. "I'm hurt."

"I'm sure you've already been comforted." She ran her fingers through her hair and was impressed. Yu's shampoo was a magic potion.

Lui Bei pulled her aside. "I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Oh?" She smiled.

"Your bodyguards have been complaining." He said wearily.

"So?"

"So? That is not what I want to hear. You should be more concerned, it is your duty to see to the needs of your men. I purposely gave you two bodyguards to begin with to see how well you would do with troops. I am very disappointed. I know you are a solitary fighter, I understand that, however I need generals. You are a formidable warrior and I do believe you will make a very good general one day. You have to make it your concern when your men are involved."

"I will see to it then, for you my lord." She found herself suddenly thinking about her emperor naked. _No. He's Shang's man. Not to mention out of your league._

-------------------------

Cal strolled over to her tent and looked behind it to the small fire. Both of her bodyguards were sitting and chatting when she walked up and stunned them into silence. "Good evening."

"My Lady." They said in unison.

"I know I haven't been very good to you boys, which is not how you deserve to be treated. I have no excuses. However I do want to make things right."

"My Lady, all we ask is to protect you. We can't protect you if you run off."

"Sometimes that's the way it's going to have to be." She had to admit.

"Then tell us what you want us to do when that happens."

"Oh, that's right you do look for orders don't you?"

"Yes, we just want to do our jobs."

"Would horses help?" she asked and watched their faces light up.

"You'd have to fill out a requisition form and the quartermaster would never sigh off on that."

"Why don't you get me that form and I'll see what I can do." She smiled sweetly.

-------------------

"Lord Cao Cao, sir! I found this requisition form posted to the gate." The young bodyguard handed the sheet of paper to his master.

"This is gibberish. These are just random lines." Cao Cao was ready to throw the paper away when Xiahou Dun snatched it from his hand.

"That's because it's Latin." Dun recognized the sharp cold writing from the days when he was teaching his friend to read.

"Can you read it cousin?" Cao asked knowing Dun had picked up a bit out of curiosity and boredom.

"Yes these two lines, that's "II" the number two. And over in the item category that's 'Equus'. Two horses." Dun crumpled the paper in his hand.

.


	13. The Battle of Bo Wan Po

Chapter 13

The Battle of Bo Wan Po

"Gentleman, the battle will go as planned or our plans will fail." Zhuge Liang said proudly as he unraveled the map.

"An epitaph if I ever heard one." Cal whispered to Guan Yu.

"You barbarian. That's strategist poetry. Uninspiring and pointless." Yu whispered back.

"You're both wrong. It's just plain stupid." Fei sighed from behind them. "I want a drink"

"There's a surprise." Yun scratched his head.

"I have spent a great deal of time preparing this strategy." Liang continued. "And Lord Liu Bei accepts my plan wholeheartedly. Now, on to the details. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei will be in the northern section of the forest. Zhao Yun will take the center and Lu Bu will take the south. Yue Ying will remain with me and we will back up Lu Bu. Liu Bei will stay in the center behind Zhao Yun. Pang Tong you will be leading the fire attack. Oh and Quinirus Calpurnia, you'll be serving under Lu Bu. I discussed it with Liu Bei and it seems that you are a long ways away from being able to handle your own command. So we will make you a sub-general. Maybe he can teach you something."

"Like how to command through fear?" she tried to ignore her hurt. How could Liu Bei discuss her with this stranger, and something so personal, so humiliating? It may have been true, but…

"Or how to know when a response is requested. Now we will lure the enemy into the woods for the fire attack. Understand? Provoke them, and then retreat." Liang finished and walked out of the tent.

"How is that a plan?" Fei grumbled.

"Run away? Is that what he just said?" Guan Yu looked around.

"Don't worry." Lu Bu stretched and patted Cal on the head. "I'll protect you." He laughed-amused at his insult.

"I've always enjoyed explosions." Pang Tong said thoughtfully.

"Hey, why don't you ready my horse? Does that sound like something you can handle?" Lu Bu asked his new officer.

"Thus starts the mighty army of Lu Bu, the great general and his stable hand." Cal mumbled as she walked off to the stables.

"I want him to shine!" he called after her.

"I'll show you shine, when I polish the hair right off your balls with the girth off your own saddle."

---------------------

"This should be entertaining. Hey look it's Xiahou Dun, and does he look pissed." Lu Bu looked over at Cal.

"Really? I wonder how that feels." She was angered even more by the fact that he was enjoying this.

"Now, is it my fault you aren't worth very much alive to anyone? Maybe you should take notes, I'm sure you're going to be learning so much today that you won't be able to remember it all."

"You're a riot." She turned to her bodyguards. "Gentlemen, I say we just stay by this bridge and kill everyone, does that sound like a plan?"

"Yes, my lady."

"Well Ares, it looks like you'll need to sit this one out for now." She dismounted and led the horse over to a tree.

"Ares. Where did you get such a name?" Lu Bu asked curiously.

"Ares is the Roman god of war." She said as she tied the reins to the tree.

"Well isn't that an honor. Maybe we can find a jackass and name it Guan Yu."

----------------------

"This is ridiculous." Guan Yu struck seven men down in one sweep. "Running away is not a strategy."

"But we must obey our orders, father." Guan Ping picked through men but not as spectacularly as his esteemed father. Unfortunately for the young man, his accomplishments were often overlooked since he was not easily distinguishable from the other sub-generals.

"I do not trust this new man. Let us attack and show Cao Cao what we are made of. Let Zhang Fei know of our advance."

--------------------

"What is going on!?!" Zhuge Liang screamed, "Why is Guan Yu attacking?!? He has his orders; he knows we must lure them in to the forest!"

"My husband, he does not trust you." Ying answered only to receive a nasty glare.

"What a brilliant deduction. Someone must go rein that fool in before he ruins everything!" Liang kicked his horse harshly and lunged into a gallop.

"Sir, Zhang Fei is attacking as well." A nameless corporal reported

"No! That is our entire left flank! If they are cut down….."Liang cursed and spun his horse in another direction not knowing how to handle the two men without whining to Liu Bei.

"Sir! Lu Bu has routed Xiahou Dun's unit. Lady Quinirus killed Han Hao and they have cleared the southern side of the battlefield." A private reported

"Are they holding position?" he demanded.

"Uh no, they are advancing." The man obviously thought it was a ridiculous idea to stay put after the area was cleared.

"Sir! Guan Yu's unit is demoralized and they are retreating." Another corporal materialized.

--------------------

"Xu Zhu is mine!" Cal screamed at Lu Bu.

"Like hell he is, I order you to leave that fat bastard for me!" Lu Bu hollered as Red Hare closed the distance between them.

"My lady! Guan Yu has been forced to retreat! Zhang Fei is about to fold as well." Her bodyguard reported.

"Shit! That means the north is an open highway to Liu Bei." She turned to Lu Bu, "Looks like I'm actually going to obey an order. Xu Zhu is yours. I'm off to check on the Emperor! Men, let's go."

"I didn't say you could do that!"

"Well if I don't this battle will be over real quick, and who wants to put an end to all this senseless killing?" she winked and took off.

----------------

"Who is this approaching?" Liu Bei asked his elite guard captain.

"Sir, it looks to be an enemy. Please let us handle this."

"I Yu Jin have come for your head Liu Bei." The enemy officer screamed as he charged.

"Creature of chaos, I will vanquish you!" he replied and charged as well.

----------------

"Come on Ares; help me find the way through this damned forest." Cal was forced to stop at the fork in the road. He bodyguards caught up with her and argued amongst themselves as to the correct direction. "We're taking the right."

"But the fighting is off to the left?"

"Yes, but Zhao Yun is capable of taking care of that, so we must find our way to Liu Bei's side." She renewed her gallop and ducked under a branch.

----------------

"I will deliver your head to Cao Cao!" Yu Jin turned around and slashed at Liu Bei after the Shu leader knocked him off his horse.

Liu Bei hacked at the man from the back of his horse, "You will not live to see another day!"

"Reinforcements!" hollered the guard captain. "It's General Quirinus and….two bodyguards"

"Ha!" Yu Jin mocked him as his own men began to swarm the emperor. "Three men?"

"Get off of him!" Cal cut a man open in mid air as he tried to dismount her leader.

"Oh two men and a girl. Keep em coming Liu Bei!" Yu Jin slashed at him again

"Take control of the gate or they'll keep coming through!" Liu Bei ordered. "I shall prevail!"

"Yes sir." She kicked a Wei major in the face and then poked a few more through the throat before cutting her way through the crowd. "Bodyguards, stay here. Get this trash away from our emperor!" She rode off to secure the gate.

-----------------

"That could have been the end of Shu. I hope you are all happy!" Zhuge Liang paced furiously. The battle had ended with a Shu victory, but barely. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were forced to withdraw with considerable casualties. Lu Bu advanced and chased off Xu Zhu but his men became bogged down outside Bo Wan Po and Wei reinforcements pounded them mercilessly. Lu Bu himself slaughtered near four hundred men on his own and dealt a crushing blow to the enemy moral causing Cao Cao to eventually pull back. Liu Bei cut down Yu Jin and Zhao Yun repelled Dian Wei, but the cost was high. Pang Tong had to abandon his fire attack and helped support Zhao Yun's defense, but in turn the Wei army seized his explosives. The army was small to begin with, but now it was a great deal smaller. "You just had to follow orders! Why am I here if you will not listen to me?"

"Good question." Zhang Fei mumbled to Guan Yu.

"What was that?" Liang was beet red with anger.

"I said, 'good question.'"

"Do you want my position then? You who made your own decisions and got chased off by a sluggish dim witted blob of a man? I have seen where your tactics get us." Liang fanned himself and sat down frustrated.

"Our only course of action is to escape to the river. If we can make it past Chang Ban the navy will be there and we will be able to reunite with Wu. Hopefully we can negotiate an alliance against Cao Cao." Liu Bei sat back in his chair and contemplated what awaited him in Wu territory. Up until three days ago he was looking forward to seeing Sun Shang Xiang again, her youth and innocence put him at ease. However that situation had gone sour, along with everything else in his life. Liang wanted him to reprimand everyone for the blunder at Bo Wan Po, but he politely refused. Each of them knew what dire circumstance they were facing and he did not need to take another hit at their morale. His army was pitifully small, but still loyal.

"They will certainly be waiting for us, all of them. All of Cao Cao's army will be there to prevent us from retreating." Zhuge Liang said with a touch of worry.

"That we will slaughter them all on our way to the river." Lu Bu said emphatically.


	14. The Battle of Chang Ban

Disclaimer: I've been inserting character dialohue from the game in where I can, so be warned that some of this belongs to Koei. (Other then the obvious characters....blah blah.)

Thanks for the reviews again-I'm glad you like it.

Chapter 14

The Battle of Chang Ban

"How are you holding up?" Zhao Yun asked sympathetically.

Cal sighed, "You should be asking Lui Bei that question not me. He's so very worn out and I'm worried about him. He looks so much older now."

"Well, running for your lives does that sometimes." He reminded her. "You seem to be doing well with Lu Bu."

"Yes, he's just so friendly now, it makes me sick."

"You're crazy." Yun laughed.

"He's driving me insane." She looked ahead as Lu Bu chatted happily with Guan Yu.

"Why because you can't beat him?" Yun asked knowing the truth.

"Yeah. I don't like being toyed with while he bides his time."

"Without him yesterday…..it would have been considerably more difficult." Yun admitted.

"Still doesn't put my mind at ease." She confessed.

"Well you should be proud though, you're the only one to recruit an officer so far."

"Whose kid is that?" She saw a small baby boy being carried by an old woman.

"That's Lui Chan, Lui Bei's son."

"His son?" she turned to Yun shocked.

"He's been married before; his wives just die off a lot."

"Why is he bringing his family along now?" She asked concerned.

"We're running away, we may not be back anytime soon." Yun smiled as Guan Yu and Lu Bu turned back to look at her and laughed. "You seem to be very popular right now."

"Except with Zhuge Liang who keeps staring me down, then looking away." She noted as the strategist did it again.

"The 'sleeping dragon' is definitely not very taken with you." Yun agreed.

"There's the problem. If we had picked up the 'high-strung fire-breathing dragon' instead, we wouldn't be running away so much."

"You called, my lady?" Pang Tong laughed as he joined them. "I'm the fledging phoenix, will that do?"

----------

'There it is, Chang Ban." Guan Yu looked over the city from the hills above.

"And there they are. The entire Wei army." Zhang Fei added

"Oh and the entire Xiahou family is up front to greet us." Cal looked over the battlefield and identified them. "There's Dun off to the left and on the right is Xiahou De and En, his nephews. Then I'd bet their daddy's in behind them."

"Whose Dun's skinny little clawed friend?" Zhao Yun asked thinking the figure had to be a girl, "Zhen Ji maybe?"

"No, she packs a flute; I guess he's the new guy. Has to be, Cao sticks the new people with Dun since he trusts him the most." Cal shook her head, "I wonder who he is."

"I'll go ask." Lu Bu pushed past them and began to head down the pass.

"Our orders are to wait until Liu Bei is ready then…." she watched him wave her off

"Run, I get it by now. I'm going to make the running a bit easier on all of you." Lu Bu kept going.

"Not without me you don't, I'm getting tired of not beating up on officers." She trotted after him.

"Where's he going?" Liu Bei rode up and asked.

"To clear the way." Zhao Yun replied with a roll of his eyes. "How gallant."

"We're ready to move out anyway, so let's go." Liu Bei took the lead. "But we have to be quick."

"The right side looks a lot more inviting." Guan Yu suggested.

"Good, Zhao Yun, can you tell Generals Lu and Quinirius that is our intended direction, if they would be so kind as to make a path for us?" Bei smiled.

"Sure, after I tell her we're shortening her name to Quin." Yun galloped off.

-----------

"Hold on!" Yun hollered.

"What?" Lu Bu snapped and turned back towards him annoyed.

"Don't be such an ass." Cal threw a burned sesame rice ball at Bu then smiled at Yun, "Joining us?"

"Eating? Now?" He raised his eyebrows, "So, are you pregnant?"

"That's real funny Yun. I'm going to have to kick your ass for that." She turned and kept advancing.

"You want something?" Lu Bu reiterated.

"Oh, orders from Lui Bei are to clear out the enemy from the right path. We will advance that way." Yun smiled, "I'll take Xiahou En."

"Xiahou De." Cal called.

"Whoever seeks death." Lu Bu kicked Red Hare into a gallop and tore away from the two.

"I hate him, a lot." Cal sneered and galloped after him.

Yun took chase. "I bet I can beat that dainty little horse of yours to the Xiahou kids."

"Do you know how many Drachmas Ares has won?" She called back to him, "He'll outrun that nag of yours by damn near quarter of a mile."

"You're on." He kicked Tsunami into a full gallop.

Cal held back until she thought Yun's horse was close enough to make it a fair race, then she let Ares have his head. "Let's dust him, boy."

---------------

Cal caught the shocked look on De's face before she plowed through his men and knocked him clean off his horse. Ares was excited now, the combination of the race, oncoming battle and his hot Arab blood made a very uncooperative boy. She tried to turn him back to beat on De a bit more, but he focused on a beefy angry man ahead of them. The little colt angled himself for a good clean run at the man's bodyguards, and Cal was proud of him. He was a very good little warhorse and she was happy to have a partner that enjoyed the sport as much as she did. She smiled as she realized her target; it was the furious Xiahou Yuan. She heard Zhao Yun's battle with En behind her and laughed. It would be two kills for her because of the speed of her horse; it was going to be a good battle. By the time she reached Yuan, the Shu army was marching at double quick down the pass behind her.

"Well, well, look who it is." Yuan grinned. "Come on girl, show me what you've got!" he charged.

Ares pinned his ears straight back and readied himself to kick when Yuan's horse past. There was something that he hated about that squat little chestnut, and this was his chance to do something about it. Cal concentrated-the rapier was not amongst the most highly sought after weapons for a horse soldier. If she was to land a worthwhile hit, she'd have to pierce his side, between the plates of armor while avoiding his pummeling stick. It would be fun to try anyhow.

Yuan swung wide and cursed as the spooky little gray horse swiped his mount and Cal was able to slice his upper arm open. Before he could spin around to counter, his horse screamed and flew off to the side. Yuan watched helplessly as his favorite chestnut colt, Firefly, stumbled and fell. He flew off his back and landed in a group of bodyguards. Firefly snorted, unsettled by the unexpected kick in the haunches. Yuan sat up and screamed, "Where are you, you little bitch! I'll teach you and that little rodent of yours to fuck with Xiahou Yuan! No more games!"

Cal slid off her horse, leaving him to pick his own battle. As the testosterone filled colt launched himself into a fight with the chestnut she looked for the sound of Yuan's voice. "Come now Yuan. Are you sure you don't want some help from your older brother?"

"I'm over here, waiting for you my sweet. I'm ready to beat your treasonous head in." He stood, open-stanced, welcoming her attack.

Cal slowly strode up to him and got close enough to reach out with the tip of her rapier and touch his armor. She flicked the rings on the breastplate and said, "Still into the nipple rings I see."

"Oh honey, this big ole rod here is even ribbed for your pleasure." He grinned, "And mine too." He launched a quick offensive attack that she was obviously expecting.

"Gate's open." Lu Bu blew past and headed towards the castle. "Going to town."

"You asshole, those weren't our orders!" She shook her head. "Well let's finish this up so I can go refresh his memory. Where were we? Oh yes, you were trying to attack me." She punched him in his smug face then whacked his hat off with her rapier. "What is it with you and your cousin and these dumb little hats?"

"I'd tell you, but you don't know anything about class." He wailed on her with his Enforcer Rod but to no avail. She blocked and parried.

"Oh, now that one really stung." She laughed. "You imbecile, do you ever stop wishing that you were half as good as your brother?" She kicked him in the chest and sent him flying into another pack of men. The gate was open ahead and Shu men were swarming towards it. Zhao Yun took off to protect the advance and she heard the happy sounds of Zhang Fei and Guan Yu carving through Wei soldiers.

"I shall smite you with my blade of honor!" Yu hollered.

"Smite! Smite!" Chanted Fei.

"Well this has been fun but….."Yuan looked around, he was almost surrounded. "We better be going. Heed my words, I won't loose at archery." With that he drew his bow and launched five arrows at her. He saw Firefly running away with his men. _Dammit I'll never hear the end of this._

Cal hit the ground when she saw him pull out the bow and by the time she got up he was well on his way back to the main force. "Why does it always seem like they get away?" She saw Ares prancing around where she had dismounted; he had won his bout too. "Let's go remind Lu Bu of his orders, shall we?"

-------------

"Lu Bu! Dammit, where the hell are you? You mindless bastard. " she galloped up the pass, following the path of carnage. Suddenly there were men filling the voids: Wei reinforcements. She came to a sliding halt and looked at them as they looked at her. "Aww hell."

"Charge!" More reinforcements bolted out of the castle and up the pass, boxing her in.

"Son of a bitch." She growled and launched Ares at the men in front of her. The little horse soon became bogged down and despite her best efforts a major with a pike knocked her off her horse. Several men tried to disarm her, but it was futile. As soon as she was back on her feet she was tearing into the masses of enemy troops mercilessly.

-----------

Lu Bu headed back North so that he could loop around to the neglected side of Chang Ban. As Red Hare galloped along, men began to flee shouting. "Lu Bu! Lu Bu is here! Run for your lives!" He grinned, life was good.

Xiahou Dun watched the man get closer and he slowly went out to meet him. Over the screams of the men Lu Bu was puncturing and cleaving, Dun shouted, "I am Xiahou Dun, Come if you want to die!"

"You dare face the mighty Lu Bu?" he walked Red Hare over to within twenty feet of the man. "Why even try?"

"Your life is mine to take, none other." Dun slid off his horse

"You have the balls to do that when I'm not bound?" He swung his leg over Red Hare's neck and hit the ground.

"Arrrrrrrrr" Dun screamed as he charged the great warrior.

"Hmmm. Worthless scum." Lu Bu charged him as well.

----------

Cal was carving a path through the men, very slowly. She had assigned her bodyguards to assisting Lui Bei and no one knew she was over here. If things went sour she would never know; this situation would not do. So she pulled out the trusty dagger and began to chop the enemy to bits with both hands. With a sharp whistle she called Ares over. "_Ferio!"_ (L. Strike) she watched as her warhorse reared up and began to help. She had to get back to her lord.

---------

Lui Bei crossed the bridge and turned to watch Zhang Fei block the path of the Wei reinforcements as Guan Yu tangled with Cao Ren and Xu Huang fought with Zhao Yun. They were all such devoted men, and he suddenly didn't think he deserved them. Zhuge Liang's approach snapped him out of his thoughts.

"My lord, you must hurry."

"What of Lu Bu?" Bei asked

"No sign of him." Liang hissed. "If he has betrayed us then it is that Roman that will die for it."

Before Bei could tell him to shove it, Yue Ying rode up panicked. "My dear girl, what is wrong?"

"My lord, Lui Chan is still in the castle!"

"What?!" Lui Bei's heart stopped beating for a second and then he turned to head back to Chang Ban.

"No my lord, you mustn't!" Ying plead. "We'll find him, I promise. You must head to the escape point, or else this is all for nothing!"

"Come, we must go." Liang pulled Hex Mark with him towards the river with Lui Bei looking back at Chang Ban horrified.

Ying turned towards the bridge. She had no idea how she would find the boy, Chang Ban was a maze of houses, useless walls, crates and most importantly produce tents. She'd never find the boy in time, but Zhao Yun would. He had spent time in the city and knew it well. She headed towards the man, who was busy beating on Xu Huang. Ying smoothly joined in on the fray.

"Ying, what is wrong with you?" Yun was shocked.

"You need to find Lui Chan he is in the city somewhere. I'll take care of this one if you don't mind." She hacked at Huang's head and the man backed off momentarily.

"I'll be back." He ran over to Tsunami and was heading to the castle in an instant.

"Well that leaves you and me doesn't it? I shall prove my might to you and everyone else here." Ying threw her scythe out and watched it cut his arm and then whip back to her.

---------

Dun and Lu Bu where in a deadlock when Cal finally located her belligerent commanding officer. She shook her head and cursed him, "You self-centered bastard." Then she saw a flash of something coming at her, by then it was too late.

Zhang He leapt up and swatted the girl off her beautiful horse. He stood and waited for her to stand up and lock on to him. "Shall we dance, pretty lady?"

He was the oddest man she had ever seen. He was very feminine, had a very sweet voice and was dressed like a gypsy. Then there was the claw, what was up with that? "Who the hell are you?"

"Such beastly language." He smiled.

"I didn't think Cao Cao had a taste for transvestites, but I haven't been near his bed in a while." She raised her rapier in a salute, "After you precious." She grinned as his face contorted into rage; obviously he was teased a lot for his tastes.

"You will learn the beauty and grace of Zhang He!" He ran at her and started wailing away with his unique weapon.

"Beauty and grace are two words that are lacking in my vocabulary. Ask those two boys over there."

---------------

Pang Tong made his way over to the bridge on the eastern side of Chang Ban. He knew that someone would have to realize sooner or later that there was an unprotected bridge over there and try to use it. Since all of the Shu generals were engaged or MIA he figured he ought to see what he could do. He ran into a startled Yu Jin at the bridge. The enemy eyed him and waited for him to dismount. Then Tong planted his staff in the ground and said, "You'll have to pay to get through here and it's not cheap, let me tell you."

--------------

Cal let loose on the annoying Zhang He and bitch-smacked him a few times with her rapier. He slunk away defeated and she turned back to her horse. "Lu Bu, we need to get going. Unless you want to stay with Cao Cao?" She mounted Ares.

Lu Bu tossed Xiahou Dun in the air and swung at him with the shaft of his halberd sending the man flying over the gate and out of view. "Now I really wanted to kill him." He said annoyed at himself for using a launching maneuver.

"Later. Or have you forgotten that we're part of an army?" she sneered.

"So you came to rescue me?" he mounted Red Hare.

"I came to make sure that Zhuge Liang doesn't get an excuse to have me executed. Now get your delinquent ass back to the army." She pointed her rapier at him.

"I don't believe you're the one qualified to issue orders." He chuckled and smacked her weapon away with Sky Scorcher.

"Well I'm not going to be here to save your neck from Cao Cao a second time around." She turned to the south and galloped away.

------------

"I have him, my lord!" Zhao Yun delivered the baby into the arms of his father. "And also this neat sword I took off of Xiahou En."

"That is Cao Cao's sword, the sword of trust." Zhuge Liang took the weapon and looked it over. "Well anything related to trust has no need to be in Cao Cao's possession."

"Are we all here?" Lui Bei asked as he began to walk up onto the boat with Zhao Yun.

"No, Lu Bu, Quinirius and Pang Tong are all absent." Zhuge Liang dusted his robe off. "I suggest we leave them."

"That's why we don't listen to you!" Zhang Fei hollered and boarded his boat with Guan Yu.

"Ying, can you make sure Pang Tong knows he's on the same craft as you?" Yun asked.

"Of course. I suppose that leaves Cal and Lu Bu on the second boat then?" She queried

Yun shrugged, "It's just the way it worked out."

"Sounds entertaining at the very least." She smiled, "Try not to get too burned out playing chess with Lui Bei."

"Oh I won't, it's his brain that's going to be fried."

----------

Red Hare and his rider charged across the bridge and past a bored Pang Tong. "Well I guess we're done then."

Cal followed a minute later and stopped to greet her friend. "So honey, how much is it going to cost me?"

"It all depends on what services you request." He winked and giggled.

She smiled as he mounted his horse. "You'd be an awesome prostitute, you know that?"

"Who says I'm not already? But you, young lady, definitely can't afford me."

"What if I tell you I've got a pleasure yacht waiting for us on the river?" She smirked and trotted off.

"I'd need to know how well you can play with other women."

"Sorry, honey. It's only going to be you and me, I'm too selfish to share." She laughed thinking how peculiar he must be in bed. Something she definitely would never want to find out.

---------

"We're here!" Pang Tong smiled at Yue Ying as the thousands of Wei soldiers poured down the mountain passes and charged towards the river.

"Tong, you're with us on the third boat. Cal, you're on the second." Ying smiled and disappeared.

Lui Bei appeared on the first boat and hollered across the river. "We're going to fight Cao Cao with Sun Jian and win!" the men cheered their leader.

"Later kiddo." Tong trotted his horse onto his assigned boat.

Cal looked over the deck of the second boat carefully. Ying didn't want to tell her something. As she rode Ares up the ramp she still didn't see her companion for the journey to Wu territory. Then he launched an arrow past her head and she screamed towards Lui Bei's boat, "Someone's going to pay for this! This isn't funny!"

Lu Bu laughed, "Of course it is." He smacked her shoulder "We're going to be boat mates for the next two weeks! Think of how many times I'm going to pound you into the deck. Nothing but sparring, day and night."

"I really fucking hate you." She snapped.

"I know. That's why it's so much damned fun."

--------

The first week went by without much change. The four Shu boats traveled down the river and the occupants got into a routine. Lui Bei and Zhao Yun took a moment from their perpetual chess match to look over the boat behind them as the sun set.

"Good to see Zhang Fei is weaning himself off of wine." Yun said cynically. Fei had been passed out on the deck of the third boat for two days.

"And that our strategists are enjoying the scenery." Lui Bei smiled; none of the three officers had come out on deck in five days. He knew what was going on, it was always the same. Pang Tong would argue with Zhuge Liang until he started to scream, then Yue Ying would toss in a subtle insult in her sweet manner and the vein on Liang's head would begin to throb.

"Well it looks like Cal and Lu Bu are at it again. Surprise." Yun watched as the two fought. It was nothing new, they had been sparring before the boats were untied at Chang Ban, but Cal's frustration was evident. Yun's lead guard confirmed that she had lost every match so far. But to her credit, it didn't dampen her resolve.

Lui Bei put his elbow on the railing and rested his head on his hand. He watched Lu Bu lure her closer to the starboard side of the boat, then with incredible ease he slipped his halberd under her belt. In an instant she was airborne and he flipped her off the side of the boat. Lui Bei stood up straight, slightly alarmed. However Lu Bu still had her attached to his weapon, he could see his smile from here. Suddenly, with the slightest effort, he lifted a soaking wet Cal out of the river. She still held her rapier in her hand and waved it menacingly at him. He dunked her back into the water. "He is creative isn't he?"

Yun saw Lu Bu brace himself to pick the woman out of the water and launch her somewhere. A second later Cal was out of the water again and flying across the boat. Lu Bu, incredibly, had unhooked Sky Scorcher from her belt midair and released her from his hold. "Poor, kid."

"Kid?" Lui Bei scoffed. "She's not much younger then you."

"A good four years is enough." He smiled. "Besides I'm smart enough to not train against Lu Bu. Maturity points 5"

Bei folded his arms over the railing again and continue to watch the match. "It's helping though. I wonder what he's up to. It's as if he's trying to turn her into something." He watched Cal stand up, drenched. The water poured off of her and her weapon and puddled at her feet. She sheathed her rapier and picked up a hatchet that lay nearby. With the same movement she launched it swirling across the deck and it imbedded itself in the mast beside Lu Bu. He could hear him laugh at the miss from here, but Cal pointed above him and smiled. As Lu Bu looked up, the lower sails off the foremast came crashing down on him. "But she thinks her way out of things pretty quick."

"Does that count as a win?" Yun asked.

"Nope, but it wasn't a loss."


	15. The Arrival in Wu Territory

Chapter 15

The Arrival in Wu

            "Lui Bei welcome!" Sun Jian greeted his potential ally warmly.

            "My congratulations at keeping the imperial seal out of the hands of Cao Cao." Lui Bei seemed to be a bit more at ease.

            "Between you and me, it was just plain dumb luck.  I see Shu has grown." Jian looked over the new officer and focused on Lu Bu. "So the rumors are true then."

            "Yes, but he has proven himself invaluable.  There truly is no greater warrior than Lu Bu." Lui Bei agreed.

            "Watch yourself, friend.  Dong Zhou was not the first man to die by his hand. " Jian cautioned.  "I thought you were the one pushing Cao Cao to execute him at Xia Pi.  Or is my intelligence division really that inaccurate?"

            "Well, yes.  I fully expect him to betray us again.  It's his nature.  I couldn't help but listen to one of my officers though, and the advice has turned out to be good for us.  Besides, I have a pair of very watchful eyes on him at all times." Lui Bei tossed his head to his left.

            Sun Jian looked over at Cal who was staring angrily at Lu Bu. "Good, you've brought the negotiator.  I honesty don't know what to do with Shang, she's just so hot-tempered."

            "Well, I suppose Shang's right about many things.  Maybe this marriage is just…"

            "No.  She's getting married while you're here in Wu.  That is final."

--------

            "Well since everyone is here, I suppose we'll go ahead with introductions." Sun Jian said it irritated.  He specifically asked everyone to stay in the main chamber and offer Shu a proper welcome.

            "Sorry pops, we're just a bit excited you know." Sun Ce shrugged. He had already introduced himself to everyone he hadn't already met, making it very clear that he was the next in line for the throne.

            "Well, as you have already met Sun Ce, let me introduce my younger son, Sun Quan." Sun Jian shot his eldest child an annoyed look.

            Lui Bei bowed respectfully. "Sun Quan, my officers.  Zhuge Liang, Pang Tong and Yue Ying, our strategists.  And our warriors, Zhang Fei, Zhao Yun, Guan Yu, Lu Bu and Quinirius Calpurnia."

            "Oh we're changing your name to Quin." Whispered Yun to Cal.

            "Oh no you're not.  Just because your tiny little brain can't remember anything beyond four letters, doesn't mean I should have to suffer the humiliation."

            "I'm going to ask to borrow the emperor's seal, so I can make it official."

            "I still owe you an ass-kicking, shall we up the quantity to two now?" Cal growled

            "Please do." Yun grinned.

            Quan was shaking everyone's hand but when he reached Cal she hesitated. "Oh, my, uh hands are dirty." She apologized.

            "That's ok, I don't mind." 

He stretched out that hand, the one that Shang had talked about so much.  Grudgingly she shook it and smiled. "Nice to meet you."

            "Hey Quan, did you know Shang dressed her?  Not a bad job, eh?" Ce prodded.

            Quan smiled, "For a tomboy she sometimes surprises me with the girly things she does."

            Cal grabbed her hand back, "I don't see Shang, is she hiding?"

            "Yup, she wanted you to meet her in the stables." Ce delivered the message then walked back to his father's side to tease him about something.

            "I'll be back." She tapped Yun's arm and smiled. "Let Bei know, huh?"

-----------

            "My lord?" Yun whispered in Liu Bei's ear as the Sun family men led the way into the main hall.

            "Yun, what's wrong?" Bei turned to see his friend smiling.

            "Are you trusting your love life to Cal?"

            "Yun…."

            "I'm betting against her." Yun winked.

            "I think she can pull it off." Lui Bei smiled, "And I'll take your bet"

-----------

            "Shang, dammit, what the hell are you doing?" Cal snapped as the bouncy girl materialized out of the loft.

            Shang was hurt, she didn't expect that kind of reception. "I was happy to see you……" her smile faded.

            "Sorry, I'm just in a hostile mood.  I've spent too much time around Lu Bu." She shook her head; he was always ready to fight.  It bothered her more then anything; she hated to be on guard all the time.  It was like it used to be….

            "Lu Bu? So it is true…." Her eyes widened.  She ran to the stable door and peered out. "Wow, you've got a lot of people now.  Oh, and another girl."

            "You'll like her, she's a strategist so be prepared for psychoanalyzing." Cal sat down on a straw bale.

            "So you and Lu Bu huh?" she raised her eyebrows as she looked back at Cal.

            "I'm assigned as his sub-general thanks to Zhuge Liang being a dick.  But don't get any ideas; we're not getting that close again.  Unless I'm going to slit him from ear to ear."

            Shang looked at Lui Bei sadly then back at her friend and sat down. "I don't want to marry him.  My father's going to make me."

            "Why not?"

            "He's old." She said defiantly.

            "So? Everyone's older then us." Cal decided to begin the battle for Lui Bei, he did deserve to have something go his way.

            "He's a pedophile." She said.

            "No, that's Cao Cao.  Bei is very bashful around women."

            "He's interested in nothing but chess."

            "So are Zhou Yu and Zhao Yun.  Clearly this is not a fault that deters your interest." Cal was on a roll now.

            "He's poor.  Ce says that he was a straw mat weaver before war broke out.  That means no land or a place to live."

            Suddenly Cal was stumped. "Straw mats, huh?" she looked over at Shang's favorite gray mare, Mystique.  "But it also means that we don't have anywhere to go.  The army is our home.  I thought you liked moving around with the army."

            "Cal, I know you're trying to help him because he's your lord, but I'm your friend." Shang suddenly got really pissed off. "And you're supposed to think of my problems first."

            "Ok _princess._  Let's talk about _your_ problems." Cal jumped up.  "Let's see, you're chasing after Zhao Yun who is only interested in really quiet, polite gorgeous women.  Hmmmm, yes a definite possibility for you.  Now Lui Bei…"

            "Hey! I thought I asked you…"

            "I am thinking of you dammit!" Cal screamed.  She watched Shang's face go pale.  Then calmly she apologized. "Sorry, my fuse is really short right now.  Look Shang, I can't tell you what's so great about him, you'll have to discover that yourself.  But he is a real genuinely good man.  He'll do everything for you and love you with every fiber of his being.  Hell he's already enamored with you, it's impossible to talk to him about you without him turning the color of Red Hare.  What I can tell you though, is that he is one hell of a find.  I can't begin to tell you what bad men are out there…." She paused and caught Shang's inquisitive look. "I envy you.  You're in the position right now to get a really good guy without even having to try.  Just give him a chance.  For me?"

            Shang suddenly hugged her friend. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize how much of a baby I'm being.  I'll give him a chance, but it's only because I wouldn't mind being empress of an army.  Especially if I get to have a friend around all the time."

            "Come on, meet Ying.  You'll have another friend very soon."

--------------

            "Ying?" Cal tried getting the other Shu woman's attention, but she was absorbed in staring at a mysterious Wu officer.

            Shang looked around Yue Ying and smiled when she noticed who she was staring at. "That's Zhou Tai, he's Quan's keeper."

            "Ying?" Cal snapped her fingers in front of the woman's eyes. Finally she saw some recognition as she looked at her.

            "Hi..You must be Lady Sun.  I have heard so much about you." Ying had the charming polite lady act down.

            "Yes, and I've heard about you too.  Do you want me to introduce you to Zhou Tai?" Shang asked in her typical excited state.

            "Who?" Ying asked and started to blush a little.

            "You know the shady fellow you were just ogling." Cal said with a grin.

            "I'm married, I don't ogle anyone." She hit Cal for being right.

            "Certainly not your husband, that's for sure." Cal looked over Zhou Tai and noticed that he had that quiet but omnipotent feeling about him.  She watched his eyes scan the room briefly then return to watching them.  Had he not looked around, she would have never known he was even aware of them.  Suddenly she felt a chill- he had the sense.  That odd feeling that alerted you to someone's presence long before they were near you.  She knew it well, it was what kept her alive this long.  "Alright Shang, spill it."

            "I thought you'd never ask." Shang began to whisper and she noticed Ying trying to act disinterested. "He was a pirate captain once, but Sun Ce went out scouting for officer and found him.  Apparently he wanted to change careers.  So Ce assigned him to watch over Quan, since the Sun middle child is an idiot and can't fight.  Tai got that scar saving Quan's ass.  He's not really talkative and his got a really nice weird sword."

            "Go on Ying, tell him you want to take a look at his sword.  Ask if you can touch it if he gets to hold yours." She smiled as Ying hit her again.  She watched Zhou Tai begin to crack a smile.  _He reads lips, interesting._

            "Tai just keeps to himself, but not far from Quan.  He's quick and really, really good at fighting.  He keeps his sword sheathed and then whack! Dead man.  Whack four more dead men."

            "It comes with the line of work." Cal watched his eyes squint with a hint of recognition; he knew she was on to him.  "Go talk to him Ying, I know you want to."

            "Cal, I'm married." She plead.

            "So?" Cal shrugged. "Like you said, you two have an odd relationship."

            "I can't imagine Zhuge Liang being fun…." Shang grimaced. "Actually imagining him is kind of gross."

            "Then go talk to your future husband and picture him naked." Cal suggested. "Despite being modest and not as tall as everyone else, Bei's got a nice body.  Not that's I've seen anything below the torso.  But he likes to take off his tunic when sparring and let me tell you girl, that man is fit and trim."

            "Hmmmm…." Shang's eyes lit up. "If I do get married then I would be able to….."

            "As much as you want." Cal nodded.  "Now Ying, I don't think it would be too bad for you to find someone to fulfill the services your husband can't."

            "Hey…." Ying snapped.

            "Oh, he doesn't…" Shang was interested; everything about male anatomy interested her now.  "You mean _it _doesn't work!?"

            "He just has a slight dysfunction that's all." Ying tried to avoid the topic.

            "The man just can't get it up.  And that just won't do.  I'd bet this Zhou Tai has a fully functional penis, yes?" She directed her question more at Tai then anyone, but the girls didn't notice.  She saw him smile then point to his crotch and give her a thumbs up.  She laughed. "He's funny too, hell Ying go for it."

            The girls looked over at Tai and didn't see what Cal was amused by. Ying continued her protest. "Look he may be handsome, toned, with really nice hands and that scar may be the most attractive thing I've ever seen on a man, but…."

            "Don't forget the lip-reading.  He's good at that too." Cal added and Shang took five more seconds to get it whereas Ying was instantly pale. 

"No…." Ying looked at the object of her affection agape.

            Cal pointed over to the grinning Zhou Tai who waved at the ladies.  When Shang and Ying disappeared in a flurry of panic, he laughed out loud.  The startled and unamused looks from the other generals was classic.  Here was a big man with a katana laughing to himself for no very good reason.  Even Sun Jian let a look of worry creep across his brow.

---------------

            "Ok, can we break up now?" Lu Meng approached the conversing Zhao Yun and Cal.

            "If I can save my tears for later." Cal replied.

            Meng slumped down on the pillows. "I can't believe you didn't say anything to Shang before you left for Xia Pi.  She's been driving me insane."

            "I'll tell her you broke up with me, and that I'm heartbroken but I'll live." She smiled. "But I'm currently dabbling in her love life right now, so you'll have to wait."

            "No, you have to make sure you tell her that _you_ ended it. Ok?"

            "Meng, no wonder it didn't work out.  We have such communication issues." Cal retorted

            "Just let me be free again.  I can't take it anymore." He plead.  "But at least her bodyguards have laid off for a while."

            Yun saw the bodyguards that Meng was talking about.  Shang's very giddy and horny bodyguards.  He quickly slung his arm around Cal. "Ok, so can I grab you on the rebound?  Just until those girls go away?"

            "Yun, you're not my type.  You're not an over-bearing asshole with delusions of world domination.  You're just setting yourself up for failure." She was surprised that the small bit of attention sent the girls running back to their banquet table.

            "Ok, let's end it then." He put his hand on Meng's shoulder. "We'll get through this, I promise.  She just cuts men down like this, and all we are looking for is her love.  We'll stick together."

            "It's rough." Meng grinned. "But the last few months with the pouting princess…..now that was…."

            "Well at least you didn't have to spend weeks on a boat with Lu Bu." She grumbled.

            "Oh god, here we go." Yun closed his eyes and waited for it to start.

            "You and your buddy made the boat assignments.  I'm taking it up with you because Lui Bei is busy with winning over Shang right now." She crossed her arms.

            "Seeing you two fight reminds me of the good times we used to have." Meng tried to keep a straight face but started laughing.  Sarcasm was not his forte.

            "There were so many, yet I threw it all away." She nodded. "Like Yun and our friendship when he put me on the boat with my beloved commanding officer."

            "Oh God." He pulled a small cart with a chess set over to their seat. "Here, let's see what your ex-boyfriend thinks about this." He began to arrange the pieces on the chess boat and caught Zhou Yu's attention.

            "Looking for an opponent?  I know Meng is a push-over…..I'm not sure about you though, young lady."

            "Oh so now it's lady.  Last time it was heifer." She watched him blush and shuffle uncomfortably. "But I'm horrible at chess, no matter what you call me.  As far as strategy goes, don't come to me unless you want to know how to cross a mountain range with elephants."

            "I am sorry about that incident at Si Shui Gate, but if you're not going to play…."Yu looked eager for an opponent.

            "Right after we get done with our little word problem illustration, then I will be glad to show you a thing or two about chess."  Yun grinned; he couldn't get enough of the game.

            "A riddle?" Yu smiled, equally happy about that challenge. "Oh and I'm going to make you cry when you play me."

            "Ok.  There are four boats.  Each one acquired a name based upon the activities that we foresaw happening on the trip here.  We had the Chess, Sun Tzu, Tavern and Melee. 

            "So, chess tourney, strategy debate, binge drinking and sparring." Zhou Yu nodded, engrossed in the challenge.

"Right.  Now we have these pieces to represent our officers.  The King: Lui Bei, Queen: Cal, White Knight: Me, Black Knight: Lu Bu, White Rook: Guan Yu, White Bishop: Pang Tong, Black Bishop: Zhuge Liang, Black rook Zhang Fei, and pawn Yue Ying." Yun smiled, it worked out well.

"So, assign the boats?" Meng asked.

"Too simple.  Although for the simple minded, it may present a challenge." Zhou Yu smiled at Lu Meng. "You first."

Meng moved the pieces around. "Ok strategists, here.  Rooks on drinking boat, Yun with the King on the chess boat and that leaves Black Knight and Queen on the Melee boat." 

            "See, everyone would par it off that way.  So stop bitching." Yun tossed a pawn at her forehead

            "That sounds like something you'd enjoy." Meng said, "From everything I've heard about you. And I've heard everything."

            "It was fine." Yun smiled devilishly, "Except she got her ass handed to her all day, every day."

            "Ah, so you are more bitter about the lack of wins, then the arrangements. Typical feminine logic." Zhou Yu looked to Yun. "Shall we play then?"

            "Of course. By the way where is Lu Bu?"

            "I found a little slut servant chick and sent him off with her." Cal smiled.

---------------

            Cal watched Lui Bei and Shang part company.  Shang began to talk with her bodyguards and Bei walked over to share a drink with Guan Yu. Cal walked the long way around and slid up to her leader. "So, you held back vital information." Cal crossed her arms and looked down at Lui Bei. "After everything we've been through."

            Guan Yu looked at his lord and queried, "What did you do?"

            "I don't know."

            "You were a basket maker?" Cal said, "And that wasn't pertinent information?"

            Both men relaxed, Bei answered. "Mats, straw mats not baskets.  Maybe the occasional sandal."

            "But from that to emperor…Not too bad." Guan Yu patted his brother on the back.

            "Heh, I made more money than you." Cal grinned. "A lot more."

            "You do realize Zhuge Liang is trying to get you executed right?" Lui Bei warned with a friendly smile "But considering your help with Shang…"

 "So?" Cal asked with a raise of her eyebrows. 

            "It's a start." He said with a stupid grin.

            "Ok, well. Why don't you take her somewhere…..like fishing." Cal asked

            "You've lost your mind." Guan Yu laughed.  "Why would anyone want to do that?"

            "Because, he is very at ease when he is fishing.  If you haven't noticed, our fearless leader happens to be very shy around the ladies."

            "No I'm not." Lui Bei said defensively.

            Both of his officers ignored his protest and rolled their eyes at the absurd comment.  "Ok, but I don't think Shang will be very interested in standing around the shallows for hours of pointless activity."

            "Now, Yu…." Bei protested the insult to his favorite pastime.

            Guan Yu waved off his objection. "Pointless, boring activity."

            "You're right. However, I am counting on her to do most of the work.  He happens to be very irresistible when he's out fishing.  Standing out in the water, pants rolled up to his knees, cute little grin on his face….she won't be able to resist.  Then she can change the activity to talking.  And we all know she can talk well." Cal smiled.

            Lui Bei turned a pale shade of maroon. "Uh, so you think I'm…."

            "You're adorable." She pinched his cheek. "Especially when your stumbling over yourself because you've been embarrassed by feminine attention."

            "Who knew?" Guan Yu shrugged.

            "Ahhhh." Lui Bei's color turned to nuclear crimson.

            "However, you need to make sure you spar with her while you're out there.  And don't hold back.  That will win her, I promise."

            "Bore her then kick the crap out of her.  You should be a strategist." Yu laughed.

---------------

Zhou Yu and Zhao Yun sat amidst the chaos of the Wu-Shu gathering, completely absorbed by their chess game.  Sun Ce walked up with his wife, Da Qiao. "Hey, what happening?"

            "Ce, sometimes you amaze me with the stupidity of your questions." Yu didn't look up but made his move instead. "Not to mention the timing."

            "Heh." Ce punched his friend playfully knowing it would get to him. "Well Da and I are leaving.  Don't come knocking if you know what I mean."

            "Ce, your noncommittal sexual innuendo is getting worse." Yu watched Yun closely.

            "Oh, well sorry to disappoint.  Guess I better be good with you tonight sweetie." He kissed his wife and she giggled.

            "Goodnight boys." Da waved as her husband walked off pulling her behind him.

            Xiao Qiao came bounding up to the table to see her husband. "Baby, are you going to be done soon?"

            "No." Yu didn't look at her either.

            "Then I'm going to join Da." She skipped off to catch up with her sister.

            Yun had to look up and watch her link arms with her sister.  _Did she just…_

            "Yes you are correct, Lord Zhao.  She is going to be joining them.  She and her sister do _everything_ together."

            Yun couldn't hide his surprise. "But…..so…that doesn't bother you?"

            "No, often times Da will join us.  Actually it works out well.  I do not like to be bothered when I am working and when I am needed it is usually Ce that is sitting out.  Does this offend you?"

            "Uh no.  I just don't see how you can resist such a beautiful woman."

            "I have learned to control my carnal desires in order to give my position the attention it deserves.  Your move, sir."

            _Oh he is good; I'll never be able to keep my mind on this now._

-------------------

"So?" Cal asked the question of the day, this time directed at Sun Shang Xiang.

            "He's not bad, he's nice."

            "He'll be better when he relaxes a bit." Cal smiled.  "Oh, I was wondering if you could change your bodyguards over to flirt orders for me."

            "Who's the victim?" she asked excitedly.

            "Zhao Yun." Cal laughed wickedly, payback was a bitch.

            "Mei! Come here." Shang called. "I hear Zhao Yun is lonely."

            Mei smiled and looked over to Cal, "We thought he was with you Lady Quin."

            "It's Quinirius, don't listen to a word that jackass tells you.  Zhao Yun is the most available man in Shu right now, and believe me he needs some company."

            "Oh?" Mei asked with a sparkle in her eyes.

            "He's like the brother I never had, or maybe even the one that was killed by bandits.  Anyhow, we're just friends and I feel bad for him."

            "Really?" Mei looked over at the other girls and smiled.

            "Yup, he's all yours. Don't let him fool you, he really loves the attention." Cal saw the look Shang gave her.

            "Go ahead Mei, have fun." Shang dismissed her. When the bodyguards left she said "You _are_ evil."

            "I know, but he really deserves it."

----------------------

            "How's the game going?" Cal asked as Zhao Yun shot her the nastiest look.

            "Great, now that I have company." He tapped his fingers on the table angrily as the bodyguards swooned around him.

            "Are you going to take all day?" Zhou Yu asked as he stretched.

            "No!" He looked over the chess board again. The thoughts of Xiao and Da Qiao floated through his head but vanished in a poof of giggling bodyguards.

            "Having difficulty concentrating?" Cal asked coyly.

            "No!" Yun snapped.

            Lu Xun came up to the table and looked over the chess board. Zhao Yun had managed to get his Queen into quite a predicament. He looked up at the Shu woman who he had heard was quite promiscuous.  Maybe now, he would finally be able to loose his pesky virginity.  "Perhaps you'd like to get a bit of wine with me, my lady?"

            Cal hadn't really taken notice of the boy, but laughed when he actually tried to hit on her. "Hey look, it's a talking baby!"

            Zhou Yu raised his eyebrows and watched Xun bubble with rage. This would be interesting.

            "Why you…..you…..do you know who I am?" Lu Xun fumed.

            "A lost cherub?" Cal asked.

            "I am Lu Xun!" He felt his eyes bulge.

            "Oh, well good for you.  Can I help you find your mommy?" She asked.

            "Why you…..I challenge you to a duel!"

            "If you can keep your thumb out of your mouth long enough to wield a weapon, sure." She watched the little boy shake with fury, this was kind of fun.

            "Then go already, and stop bothering us!" Yun screamed.

-----------------

            "Zhou Yu." Sun Jian put a hand on the strategist's shoulder.

            "My lord." Yu watched Yun's hand intently.

            "I see Lu Xun has issued a challenge…."

            "Yes, you know how immature he still is."

            "But Zhou Yu, Lu Xun is your pupil. Ergo, he is your responsibility." Sun Jian watched Yun poise his hand over his last remaining knight for his long awaited move.

            "My lord, he will be fine.  What harm can a young girl do to him?  He is becoming a very accomplished swordsman." Yu knew what Sun Jian was suggesting he just hoped to weasel his way out of it.

            "Well she's Lu Bu's pupil so my guess is she'll spank him with both his swords." Yun pulled his hand back; maybe he should move his queen instead.

            "I am more concerned with Lu Xun irritating Lui Bei with his rash decisions." Sun Jian finally stepped over the game board and with two hands played out the rest of the game for both men, leading to a Wu victory.  "Since you are finished, perhaps you'd like to honor my request."

            Yun frowned and looked over at a smiling Zhou Yu, "Afterwards…"

            "We shall begin again." Zhou Yu bowed to his emperor, impressed as always with his surprisingly quick thinking. "I will oversee the activities on the training grounds for you my lord."

            "About damned time.  I was beginning to think you were going to make me do it."

----------------

            Lu Xun crossed his swords in a salute. "Whenever you are ready."

            "Moritori te saluttant!" (L. Those who are about to die, salute you.) Cal raised her rapier up straight then pointed it at Lu Xun.

            Then they began to wail on one another, Lu Xun taking up the offensive.  Lu Bu wandered over to Zhao Yun who was watching the fight next to Zhou Yu. "What's this about?"

            "Insult were thrown, challenges issued.  Same old thing." Zhao Yun shrugged.

            "So she is your pupil I here?" Zhou Yu asked curiously. 

            "Yeah, what of it?"

            "I never imagined Lu Bu to be a man who would take on training a woman." Yu replied.

            "I'm just teaching her how to kill people differently.  That's all.  Plus I piss her off, also a benefit." Lu Bu sat down and yawned.  "Why you want to make this interesting?"

            "How so?" Yu asked curious.

            "I bet she'll kick that kid's ass.  Then you can go fight her."

            "You honestly think she can beat me?" Yu asked amused.

            "No.  But I want to have her humbled so my job is a bit easier." Lu Bu leaned against the small fence.

-----------------

            "Is this honestly all you've got?" Cal asked seriously, she didn't think beating the boy would be this easy.

            "I haven't learned all my combo moves yet……but I know enough!" He stood and fired a wave of lightning at her, his charge attack.

            Cal raised her rapier in a block and then launched into a parry, knocking the young lad across the fighting ring and into his master's feet.

            "That's enough Xun." Zhou Yu stepped over the boy who looked as if he was going to cry. "You have a long way to go if you can't beat a measly woman."

            "I take it you're interested in trying then?" Cal asked as the man strode into the arena with his Ancients Sword by his side.

            "Actions speak louder then words." He raised his blade in a salute.

            _Why do I have a bad feeling about this?_ "Moritori te saluttant." She returned the salute.

            "Tell me what does that mean?"

            "Those who are about to die salute you.  It was what the gladiators used to say to our Emperor before they fought to the death for his amusement."

            "You do come from a lowly society don't you?" Yu began to circle her.

            "Hardly.  Some of the practices may seem barbaric, but they have their purpose." Cal watched him on guard.

            "My blade shall dance you to your grave." Then he let loose on the young girl.  His speed and ferocity was too much for her to even block against and he easily opened her up for an attack.  Instead he launched a charge attack and watched the electrical pulse blow her across the arena and put her in a daze.  "Mmm. Obviously you have not dealt with anyone who possesses speed in their attacks, other then yourself."

            Lu Bu shook his head. "Stupid woman doesn't listen."

            "Oh?" Zhao Yun watched her twitch a little then snap out of the daze.

            "I prepared her for that, she should have not gone down that easily.  She should have ignored him and charged him instead, then kept him in the air.  Stupid woman."

            "They fight the same way, taunt then stun with speed.  This is the first time she's fought anyone like that."

            "Good thing this was practice, or it would have been the last."

            "Why do you care so much?" Yun asked hoping to get the answer to the question everyone was asking.

            "Hmmpf."


	16. Sealing the Alliance

Thanks for the awesome reviews! I'm sorry it took so long to get these last two chapters up but as is my annoying habit I started working on a chapter three installments away from the one I needed to be working on. I should have never put a Ma Chao wallpaper on my desktop, it's making my mind wander. But hell, sometimes you just have to give a hot guy his due even if he is a polygon. Anyhow, on with the story-be warned I started to dip into the sex scenes I promised/warned against. More danger in the next chapter though. Then again if you're this far along, what's a little sex scene? Thanks again for the support!

Chapter 16

Sealing the Alliance

"This is ….nice." Shang splashed her feet in the water as Liu Bei tried to unravel her line again. She was lying, everything about this sucked.

"Stop that, you'll scare them away." He shook his head disapprovingly as he worked on her fishing pole.

"How can I scare them with splashing? They live in a running river!" She splashed Liu Bei instead.

"They know." He laughed and looked over at her. Cal was right, he was really relaxed and she was getting playful.

Shang looked up at him as the running water danced in his eyes. She couldn't help but giggle and splash him again. "We should go swimming instead."

"Yes, your father would definitely appreciate that. Especially with Huang Gai watching us like a hawk." He looked over at the burly man with the club, the princess's protector.

"Pst. Let's ditch him then!"

"You are trying to get me in trouble, young lady." He handed her the fishing pole. "And if you keep that up I'm going to have to teach you a lesson."

"Really. " She beat the water with the pole.

"I never did get to see how good you are with those Chakrams." He watched her face light up, by god it was working.

"I'll show you, old man!" She leapt up and ran over to where she had left her shoes and weapons.

"Old man? I'm only thirty-five." He put his pole down and crossed his arms in mock anger.

"I'm only twenty, so that makes you old." She stood up and crossed her Chakrams. "Let's go, get that sword of yours."

"Well what are we fighting for then?" Liu Bei asked. "I always wager on contests, it makes everything more interesting." He picked up his sheath and pulled out his sword. This was truly the best day he had had in a long time.

"Well, if you win, which you won't, I'll give you a kiss. If I win, you give Huang Gai a kiss." She giggled.

Liu Bei laughed, it was such a childish bargain. "Fine, Lady Sun. If those are your terms."

"And don't call me that!" She threw her rings at her fiancé.

-------------

"That was a disgrace." Lu Bu snorted.

"Have I shamed you? Oh no! I better go drown myself." Cal was still shaking off the vibes of Zhou Yu's charge attack.

"If you we my officer and not Liu Bei's, I would have killed you for that pathetic attempt." He kicked her barrel out from under her ass.

"Fine I admit I walked right into his trap." She shrugged. "What do you want me to do about it? I'm just not good enough."

"I never said you were going to be good enough. I at least want you to put up a good fight and not dishonor the entire dynasty and your lesser culture."

"Fine, I stick to weapons of my own trade." She threw her rapier at him.

Lu Bu kicked her rapier back at her. "You just lost to weapons of your trade, bitch. To do your job you were supposed to think and act quick while toying with your opponent's mind. Instead you beat up on a kid and get electrocuted by his mentor who used your 'tools' against you. Brilliant."

"What do you expect? My mind is turning to mush like rice left on to boil too long. Two weeks with you without a break? Come on, watching my back constantly? Having to fight night and day, without rest? Then I'm dump off the boat here into the lost matchmaker nightmare chronicle of the three kingdoms. Fuck your expectations; I want to go to bed."

"No wonder everyone wants to execute you."

"Right back at ya, big guy."

--------------

"Is this seat taken, Lady Yue?" Zhou Tai smiled warmly and chuckled at her reaction.

Ying knew she had turned red from his sudden appearance, "I'm sorry about ……well everything I said."

"Why be sorry if you were being honest?" He sat down next to her. "I'm flattered."

"You must hear that all the time."

"No." he shifted his cape around to his left side so that he could be that much closer to her. "I really don't. Especially not now." He touched his scar and smirked.

"Well, I think it's a badge of merit."

"I think you're beautiful and the most intelligent woman I've ever met. If we're passing compliments back and forth."

"Oh……Thank you." She smiled. "Really?"

"Does your husband neglect you in that manner as well?" He watched her face turn away. He readied himself for her anger with a soft smile.

"Now that is none of your concern. Maybe I am wrong about you, no gentlemen would bring that up to a lady."

"Only one that thinks he might have a shot at giving you and your body the worship it deserves."

"You are a strange one aren't you? And bold." She looked at him with a touch of respect.

"So can we get to know one another better? I'd hate to chase off the only woman in China with a smidge of interest in me."

"I'm married." Ying said it without emotion, good or bad.

"Keep telling yourself that, maybe it will mean something eventually."

"What are you angling for here? A new life?" Ying was suddenly enthralled by his psyche.

"Yeah, just like your friend. I know by the way she was reading me that she too came from a similar background, dark."

"Why do you fight the way you do? Shang says you have a unique style, is it to prove something?"

"No. I just aim to kill quickly." He smiled and kissed her hand. "Maybe we can continue this later. I have a feeling we're going to be interrupted soon."

Ying watched Tai disappear, his black cape flowing behind him and the ever present Setsuna hanging at his waist. _He is hot. _She sat and thought about him. He was everything her husband was not, and he was actually attracted to her. Tall and handsome he was also confident and well respected. Liang was brilliant, but was always trying to prove himself. The Shu officers had given him a rough time in the beginning because he was so much younger than them. Then there was his arrogance, egotistical airs and that damned mushroom hat. Surrounded by nothing but warriors she couldn't help but want for a real man, and here he was. At least he was not hiding the fact that he was hoping to get her into bed, but then again Cal had made that a sticking point hadn't she? Then she heard her husband calling her, as if she was a dog. How had Tai known?

"Ying, where have you gone woman?" Liang huffed and turned the corner. "There you are."

"I was just going to come and look for you." She said without smiling.

"Oh?" Liang had better things to do then listen to his wife.

"Sit with me a moment."

"Ying, I have very important matters to address."

"So do I. Liang, I want your permission to seek what you cannot give me from another man."

"What?!?" He couldn't believe she was bringing his problem up now. "What?!?" Did she just ask to have an affair?

"You heard me. So will you give me a chance to experience what it is to be a woman, or do I have to wonder my whole life what an orgasism is?"

"Do what you want." He wanted to scream at her, what about me? Who will pleasure me?

"Good, don't expect me until late then." She got up and walked off.

"Interesting how our women are so discontented now that we have a foreigner in our mists." Liang snarled with contempt.

------------

"Dammit!" Shang sat on the ground and crossed her arms. She couldn't do anything else; Lui Bei had both of her Chakrams twirling on his sword.

"Sorry." He chuckled.

"No you're not."

"Well you're right. I'm not sorry about loosing a chance to kiss Huang Gai. I'm just not that kind of guy." He held out his hand to help her up.

Shang reluctantly let him lift her off the ground, somewhat surprised by his strength. "I guess I owe you a kiss them." She looked at his twinkling eyes and couldn't help but feel a flutter inside. _He wasn't really that bad to be around…_

Bei suddenly blushed thinking about the young princess kissing him. Here he was a grown man, ruler of Shu, commander of a sizable army and he was acting like a young boy begging for his first kiss. "Well…"

"Are you blushing?" She asked as he turned his head away from her. "hehe…I promise I'll be gentle." She laughed.

"Now it's not like I've never kissed a woman before." He said defensively.

"But have you ever been kissed by a woman before? Huh?" She got up close to him and grinned from ear to ear. She actually wanted to kiss him, despite her objections to the forced marriage.

"I can't say I have." He watched her pucker up and peck him on the lips. He chuckled again. "So is that what you think a kiss is?"

"Hey! If you think you can do a better job…" He had silenced her with his lips and she couldn't help but put her hands on his chest and slowly wrap them around his neck. Then she felt his tongue flicker over her lips and his strong arms engulf her. _Wow…_

Lui Bei pulled away and looked at her innocent face. "Well, was that better?"

"I'll tell you after I find out what that tongue can do."

He smiled and pulled her into him, she met him halfway and he tenderly kissed her before noticing that she had opened her mouth slightly to accept his tongue. What would Sun Jian think of his little girl if he saw them now?__

--------------

"Alright, I want another chance." Cal walked up and interrupted the game between Zhou Yu and Lu Xun.

"Let us fight then." Lu Xun began to stand up only to be pushed back into his chair.

"Not you infant. I was talking to pretty boy over here." Cal looked Zhou Yu in the eye.

Yu smiled, "Foolish on your part, but who am I to refuse a challenge?"

"Good." She spun on her heels and walked towards the arena only to be stopped by Guan Yu.

"What are you doing?" he had stood by long enough.

"Making up for the embarrassment I caused yesterday." She pushed past him and went outside.

"Don't look at me, I didn't tell her to do it." Lu Bu followed his apprentice.

-------------

"Zhou Tai?" Ying whispered near his room.

"Looking for someone?" Tai snuck up behind her and laughed as she jumped.

She playfully hit him. "Don't do that!"

He looked down at the woman who was a foot shorter than he, "Why not?"

"Someone might see us…."

"Then you are here on discreet business?" he raised his eyebrows.

"No, I'm here to discuss the foreign policy of the Nanman. What do you think?"

"Honestly I think Meng Huo is a dimwit and his wife a raunchy slut, but that's just my take." He laughed as she pulled him into his room.

"Kiss me." Ying demanded.

"As you command, my lady" He bent down and kissed her waiting lips. Gently he wrapped his arms around her petite waist and pulled her closer to his body. He finished his kiss to look at her sweet face and soft brown eyes.

"Bend down so I can take off your helmet." She ran her soft hands over his strong jaw and down to his thick neck.

"You're awfully pushy." He bowed down so that she could take off his headgear. "But I'm going to have to insist that you loose your headpiece as well."

She smiled and ran her hands through his hair. "How you can hide such a handsome face….it should be a crime."

Tai took her ornamental headband off and ran his thick fingers down her long brown hair. "So what are we doing Ying?"

"I want you." She let her hand drift down the muscles of his arm.

"I thought you were married?" he chuckled as she pinched his upper arm.

"Liang is rational to a fault. But enough about my husband let us proceed to more interesting topics." She took his hand in hers and took his finger into her mouth, gently sucking it before moving onto the next and running her tongue along his worn and cracked knuckles. She felt his breath quicken and looked into his dark aroused eyes. Her own heart began to beat faster and she began to feel a sensation that she couldn't ever feel with her husband.

---------------

Cal stood and waited for Zhou Yu to wander out. He strolled towards the arena laughing, exuding an air of confidence that she wanted to beat out of him. For the first time in a while, she wanted to taste the blood of her victim.

"Shall we?" He smiled smugly.

She took a slow deep breath and closed her eyes as she unbuckled her sheath from her belt. She gripped the metal scabbard tightly, her knuckles turning white from the amount of force she exuded. Her breaths became shallower and shallower and with her eyes still closed she drew her weapon in a salute-still holding the scabbard in her left hand. "Exitus acta probat." She let the old words slip and as her eyes opened she focused on her target.

"Changing duel statements before….."Zhou Yu couldn't finish his sentence as the woman charged him with cold ruthless eyes and a long sharp blade pointed right at him.

Cal got him on the defensive, exactly as she had planned. Her blood ran cold now that she was back in assassin mode and it was time to finish him. As he blocked her assault she slammed her scabbard into his left side causing him to flinch slightly. Then with a twist of her wrist she began to lower her blade so that she could see his eyes more clearly. He was slightly annoyed, but not overly concerned which only angered her more. With her hand tightly wrapped around the scabbard she punched the Wu strategist in the face.

"Oh my god. What the hell is she doing? Who taught her to fight like that?" Guan Yu watched appalled then turned to his lord who had wandered over with his happy love-struck fiancé.

"Don't look at me! I didn't teach her that!" Liu Bei raised his hands in a plead of innocence. Then he turned his eyes down the line of Shu officers and looked at Lu Bu. Slowly everyone else did the same.

"If I knew she's do this I'd have started training her in martial arts." Lu Bu shrugged.

"Where did that new challenge come from? What happened to the 'morituri' one?" Pang Tong asked the group.

"Guess you'll have to wait till later to find out." Guan Yu answered then redirected his attention to Cal who had just taken her knee and planted into Zhou Yu's tender testicles. Then the woman took her scabbard and crashed it down onto Zhou Yu's skull. Zhou Yu crumpled from the two brutal and unhonorable hits.

"General Quinirius that is enough!" Liu Bei shouted and stormed into the arena sword drawn. "I said…."

Cal turned on her own lord, still looking for the kill. Her head was clouded with the mindless trance she was in and she did not hesitate to raise her weapon.

Liu Bei had sparred with her countless times, but never did he see this furious and savage glare in her eyes. _What had happened?_ "Enough! Lower your weapon, General. That is an order!"

Cal heard him in the distance as the fog began to lift in her head. Slowly she heard him repeat his statement more forcefully. Then she blinked a few times and looked to him confused, "My lord?"

"Sheath your weapon and give it to me." He snapped and held out his left hand, the right still holding his sword.

Involuntarily she backed up. Why had he become so hostile? She looked down at Zhou Yu who sat semi-unconscious with blood running down his face and chin holding his precious groin with both hands. _Oh god, I've gone too far. _Beginning to fear the worst she took another step away from Liu Bei.

Liu Bei saw her begin to panic so he softened his voice. "Your rapier, give it to me. It will be alright, I promise."

She slowly sheathed the weapon and handed it to him. She felt him grab it and tug as she refused to let go of it. Then she looked into his eyes and saw his uncertainty, his uncertainty about her. She let go and looked down at Zhou Yu again as Xiao Qiao ran over to him. "I'm sorry……I…."she stopped when she saw the hate in Xiao eyes.

"Come." Liu Bei's statement was simple and she began to walk towards his outstretched arm. Feeling everything was under control he sheathed his sword and wrapped his arm around her shoulders.

"I'm sorry…" she whispered.

----------

"Oh god Tai, please…." Ying writhed in the pleasure of the moment as her lover teased her.

"Please what?" He ran his finger up her thigh again and only gently brushed her sensitive areas.

"You're being mean." Ying rolled him over and lay on top of him.

"It's called foreplay, dear, sometimes you've got to be a little mean." He pulled her breast to his mouth and sucked her nipple again, she seemed to enjoy it immensely. Then he gently nibbled at her engorged tit and let his hands run over her ass.

"Tai, I want to feel you inside of me…now." She couldn't help but moan as he played with her clit again.

"Really? How bad?" He kissed her and rolled her back to being under him.

"Bad enough to rape you of you don't do it soon."

"Now, I'm the ex-pirate. I'm supposed to do all the raping and pillaging thank you." He ran his tongue over her lips then he slowly entered her.

"Oh Tai….."

"Anyone ever tell you how good you feel?" He watched her eyes sparkled with lust and he couldn't help but let a moan escape his own lips.

"No, but tell me again…aaaahhhh….yes darling, deeper."

-------------

"Well that was impressive. I'm sure you've personally seen to it that Wu will abandon all of our efforts to form an alliance. We'll be lucky if Sun Jian doesn't declare war right here and now!" Zhuge Liang threw his fan down on the table in front of Cal. _Not to mention you chased my wife into the arms of another man._

"I….." She dodged his puffy hat flying at her head.

"What, what! What could your reasoning be?" Liang screeched.

"I wanted to make up for my prior defeat. I wanted to make up for humiliating you all." She slumped her shoulders and looked around the room. Liu Bei was quiet and worried, Liang was, as always, pissed and Pang Tong was his usual self.

Tong looked into her eyes. "So this new salute of yours, does that put you in the trance?"

"No, really it's not much of a trance. It's just more of a centering of anger." She leaned away from Liang as he picked up his hat and swiped it at her.

Tong climbed up on the table and sat cross legged in front of her. "I was unaware that Westerners possessed the ability to center the consciousness."

"Just something that helps us focus on our target."

"And this new saying? Does it make you remember?" Tong rolled his staff in his hands

"Exitus acta probat-'the result validates the deeds'. It was the motto of the Legion specialists." She stopped when Tong leaned forward and looked into her eyes. "What?"

"So what do you feel when you're in this state?"

"Focus. I've developed it to the point where I just let my anger take over. I suppose that's not really developed is it? More a primal horror." She looked away from Tong's stare.

"Why did you suddenly decide to resurrect it after so long?" Liu Bei asked quietly.

"I let you down and I needed to fix it. I can't be the general you wanted me to be. I can't fight like everyone else, I wasn't trained like that. I wanted to win, bad. So I did it the way I know I could."

"You are reckless and impossible!" Liang screamed and thumped his fists on the table. "We should offer you up to Sun Jian and let him deal with you."

"Liang, no one's going to listen to you until you stop screaming like a woman." Tong rolled his eyes and turned to his old classmate. "However, we don't betray our officers."

Cal looked at Tong as he turned and saw a lot more skin then she thought she should. "Tong, do you have clothes on under that robe?"

"Nope, see?" He turned back to her and opened his robe for a quick flash. "You don't need to resort to anything you don't want to do, not for us. Leave your life behind, and don't look back."

"This isn't your decision to make, Tong." Liang spat. "It belongs to the emperor and his master strategist, not you. I don't even know why you're in this tent."

"To keep history from repeating itself." Tong grabbed Cal's hand. "But the decision does lie in Liu Bei's hands."

"Leave us then." Liu Bei said solemnly. "I don't need any more advice. Liang, Tong-you're dismissed."

Liang stood with his mouth hanging open. "But….."

"I've heard what you have to say, now leave us." He watched the men leave and looked at the woman who was a young as his future wife. How different they were though, products of entirely different circumstances, yet they became such good friends. "I remember telling you once that changes don't happen overnight."

"Yes."

"Look at me when I'm talking to you. I need to make this very clear." He saw her eyes, now welling with tears. "I don't need my officers behaving like barbarians. You have come here looking for a new life and I want to help you, but I can't if you don't let go of the past. What you did was very dishonorable. You did not allow Zhou Yu the privilege of announcing himself and preparing for battle, you turned a simple friendly duel into a thug street fight and you resorted to crude cheap moves that should never be brought into a fight. You must maintain a sense of honor. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir." She slunk lower into her chair.

"Now, we must wait for Shang. She is addressing her family on your behalf."

---------------

"Well, I tell you one thing. I never thought I'd see anyone get close enough to Yu's head to do anything." Sun Ce shrugged. "I don't know pops, I'd leave the decision up to Zhou Yu. He's the one who's been offended."

"Son, as emperor you will have to deal with these decisions. The honor of one of your officers has been compromised; you must do what is necessary to right that." Sun Jian sat at the head of the table.

"I still think we should wait for him to get better before we rush to a decision." Ce reiterated.

Quan sat silent; he didn't really care one way or another. Zhou Yu was obnoxious and he hated how close he was to Ce. Sworn brothers? What about the brother you actually have?

Shang burst through the doors. "Ok, whatever you are doing-stop. I'm not letting this go any further."

"Daughter, please…" Jian took a breath as he saw her get ready to rip into them.

"No! You three are not ruining everything for me just because your prissy strategist couldn't hold his own in a fight with a girl. Sure she played dirty, but where she comes from they feed people to lions! How could you not fight dirty amongst those people? And another thing. I'm getting married tomorrow, so don't you dare follow my wedding with the execution of my friend. I want to marry Liu Bei, I like him. So don't ruin my life with your stupid retaliation. If you ask me Yu had it coming."

"I'm glad you think so." Zhou Yu came into the hall with his head wrapped in a bandage.

"Yu, you shouldn't be up!" Ce leapt out of his seat and ran over to his friend.

"I agree with Shang. Let this issue slide. It is not worth ruining the alliance." Yu smiled weakly.

"Good. Oh and I'm not wearing a dress tomorrow!" Shang left.

"Like hell you aren't." Sun Jian snickered and looked to Zhou Yu. "How are you feeling?"

"My balls hurt enough to keep my mind off my headache. How are you sir?"

--------

"Well, of course she snapped. Lu Bu's been pushing her so hard that she's too tired to even see straight." Guan Yu poked at the fire.

Tong took his hat off and scratched his head. "Then we should keep them apart awhile."

"Can't you slip her some sleeping drugs?" Zhao Yun asked.

"No, she has to be awake. Right now Cal's involved in too much for us to make her sit out. Perhaps one good night's rest will do."

"I'll keep her with me." Yun said. "That way Lu Bu will have to work harder to piss her off."

"Where is he anyway?" Guan Yu asked.

"Off banging some chick in the stables." Yun answered. "Don't ask I was checking on Tsunami and …..yeah don't ask."

"Speaking of missing persons…has anyone seen Zhang Fei recently?" Guan Yu sighed, his brother was hardly ever sober nowadays.

"He met Gan Ning and the two of them descended on the wine jars like locusts." Yun divulged.

"Zhou Yu agreed! They're letting it go!" Shang skipped happily into the Shu encampment hollering at the top of her lungs.

"What's going on?" Ying walked up and tried to wipe the stupid smile off her face.

"Maybe you should remember what your job is and you'd know. How irresponsible of you Ying." Liang snapped.

"Hey Liang, why don't you get your war fan out of your ass, huh?" Tong shot back.

"Stay out of my affairs Tong."

"As the eldest member of Shu, I have much experience to share. Now maybe you should start listening to Pang Tong, you might be surprised what you'd learn." Tong giggled as Liang stormed off.

"Where have you been?" Shang whispered and raised her eyebrows.

"Not a word." She glared back at the princess.

"Did I hear Lady Sun?" Lui Bei came out of the tent and his face suddenly lit up.

"I took care of it, Bei." She skipped over and leapt into his arms.

"What the hell is going on?" Guan Yu looked at the small crowd and demanded. "Why is everyone so happy?"

"So….am I going to be tiger food?" Cal asked as she slowly snuck out of the tent.

"Nope, I saved you!" Shang smiled as she leaned into Lui Bei's chest.

Cal looked at the happy royal couple and then over to the glowing Yue Ying. She nodded, "Well everything is working out then."

"Yes! You and Ying have to be my bridesmaids! I almost forgot."

"I guess that means we have to get Fei off the booze for a few hours…." Yu looked Yun in the eye to let the younger man know it was going to be him assisting.

--------

"Fei?" Yu pushed the rotund warrior over with his foot and grabbed the jar of wine in his hand. "You alcoholic son of a bitch, this wine's gone bad."

"I say it's gone….good!" Fei snorted and burst into laughter.

Gan Ning fell of his log with laughter, "Gone good, hahahah, I get it."

"We better drink it so no one else has to suffer." Fei swung at the jar in Guan Yu's hand.

"For the others….yes!" Suddenly the pirate started to sing, "_Wherever the wine flows free, you'll see me!"_

_ "And me!"_ Zhang Fei joined in.

Zhao Yun cringed; neither man could carry a tune. He knew that they had to have been working all night on the song, it was just that terrible. "So what's the plan, Yu?"

Yu cracked the jar over Fei's head and watched him pass out. With minimal effort he swung the drunk over his shoulder and waited, "Well, the little one is yours.

"I ain't little!" Gan Ning started to undo his pants.

"Oh god no." Yun grabbed the first wine container he saw which happened to be a barrel. He held it over his head and threw it at the pirate with all his might. All he heard afterwards was the bells jingling as the man rolled down the hill behind him with the log he had once been sitting on. "Oh shit."

"Nice going kid. Ever hear of the word gentle?" Yu watched Yun sprint down the hill.

----------

"What are you two looking at?" Shang growled as Cal and Ying started at her.

"You're in a dress…" Ying smiled.

"You in a dress….hahahah…" Cal chuckled as Shang hit her with a bouquet of flowers.

"So are you two!"

"It doesn't bother us, my dear." Ying reminded her. "And this is actually a really nice dress."

"Sure to catch Zhou Tai's eyes I'm sure." Cal snickered. "And Bei will turn red at the sight of you Shang."

"You think?" Shang looked at herself in the mirror.

"And both of your boys will be more then happy to help you out of them." Cal sat down. "And I'll be all alone tonight…sound asleep. Ahhh sleep, how long have I dreamed of your embrace." She smiled with the thought. When was the last time she had a good night's rest?

"But we have to make it through the reception first." Ying sat down as well. "And we've seen how well these two dynasties party together."

"So sneak off. God knows your men are going to be just as eager as you are. I'll stick it out and tell everyone who asks to shove it."

---------

"And I proclaim you man and wife. Lord Liu Bei, you may kiss your bride." The nameless priest smiled at the couple before him.

Liu Bei stumbled back a step as Shang leapt at him and kissed him before he could move toward her. He wanted to kiss her as he did before but he couldn't

manage to shake the feeling that Sun Jian was staring him down. He pulled away and whispered, "Later honey."

She pouted and said, "But I want to now…"

"Patience."

"I've been patient for twenty years!"

"Then a few more hours won't hurt." Liu Bei grinned childishly and kissed her again.


	17. The Reception

Chapter 17

The Reception

"Ok everyone's drinking now, can we go?" Shang pulled on Lui Bei's sleeve like a child.

"Sunny," he had just come up with the pet name on the way back to the main hall. "Your father hasn't even made his toast yet."

"My father is a windbag. We'll be here forever."

"What are you so eager for anyway? I thought you were the demure princess." She looked down at her as she pressed her head against his neck.

"Demure…..heh, you ever hear of doggie-style?" She laughed wickedly. "I've been listening to the Qiao sisters too long."

Bei turned red and looked over at the Qiaos who were fussing over their husbands. _Good God, she's going to kill me._

----------

"Zhou Yu? Might I have a minute of your time?" Cal walked up to the Wu Strategist ignoring the fearsome stares of Sun Ce and the Qiaos.

"Of course." Yu looked over at his companions, "If you don't mind leaving us…I'm actually comfortable for the first time in two days."

As the party left Cal sat down next to him, "I wanted to apologize. I was way out of line."

"Maybe next time you will take your frustrations out on the person who caused them." Yu watched her turn her eyes to Lu Bu.

"Maybe."

"However, I have taken it as a valuable lesson. I will not fall to the same attack again." Yu watched her and cocked an eyebrow. "What are you thinking?"

Cal looked at the man who was said to be a genius. "What do you think he's trying to turn me into?"

"The mighty Lu Bu has you baffled does he? I never really took him for an intelligent man; he seems to have only one strategy-attack full force. Yet he does seem to be trying to make you into something. I think he needs an ally to assist him in his ambitions. He wants someone who will be exactly what he needs to get what he wants. Zhang Liao has sworn allegiance to Cao Cao and Diao Chan ran back home so he is left with no one. Except the girl who saved his life. Not a bad place to start if you're trying to create a warrior."

"But he has to know I don't trust him…why bother?"

"You want to know why I asked that our issue be put to rest? Well I believe this alliance will bring the end of Wei and that this marriage will solidify our unity as one kingdom. However I am suspicious of one man who may try to unravel things before any of this may come about. You have been assigned to him mainly out of spite, but Liu Bei has not changed your orders because he wants you to keep Lu Bu in check. He assured me of this and that is honestly one of the few things that has put my mind at ease during these talks. I do not like him, I do not trust him and I think he is dangerous no matter how desperate you are for officers."

"So I'm his unofficial babysitter?" She was surprised by this omission; Lui Bei had never mentioned it to her.

"Yes. And considering what you did to me yesterday, I am very confident in your ability to control him. Even if you can't, you are close enough to him that you see through his shady motives and alert the others before he has a chance to do any damage. He is trying to wear you down with this endless training and uncharacteristic behavior, be wary."

"Thank you." She looked over at him and smiled, "I really am sorry."

"Well it has given me an excuse to be away from Zhuge Liang's whining for a few days. I honestly don't understand how you can be around that man all the time."

"A toast, to days away from Zhuge Liang. May they be many and frequent." She raised her wine glass.

"Here here." He clinked her glass and watched her down the glass in one shot.

---------

"Hello, beautiful." Zhou Tai said from behind a column out of the darkness.

"Hello, my naughty pirate." Yue Ying responded.

"I thought we might want to try sneaking off to river. Ever made love on a beach?"

"Need I remind you of how long I've waited for your touch?" She leaned her head back against the column. Knowing her lover was on the other side made her face light up. "I bet you have something odd in store for me though."

"Well of course, I am a man of the world." Tai reached around out of the darkness and playfully pinched her ass. "I did pick up a copy of the Kama Sutra while we where in India once. Pretty neat book."

"Maybe you'd like to read me your favorite verse tonight and we can give it a try." She grinned from ear to ear.

"Darling Ying, we have many more years to go before I run out of tricks and have to rely on a book." He laughed.

---------

"Awww..you made a new friend." Yun smiled as Cal came over to sit with him and Guan Yu.

"Fei wander off already?" cal asked Guan Yu as Yun pulled on her hair.

"Yeah, he's probably humping a wine jar now." Yu said disgusted.

"So what did you tell Zhou Yu?" Yun smiled curiously.

"That I'd suck his balls and make them feel better…" He winced as Yun smacked her.

"You didn't!"

"No, but that will teach you to pry into my business." Cal smiled as he put her in a headlock and ruffed up her hair.

"We've obviously let you go unchecked for too long." Guan Yu smiled.

"Speaking of keeping someone in check…." She pushed Yun away and tried to tame her curly brown hair so that she didn't look like a gypsy. "Do you boys know about some unspoken order that I'm Lu Bu's leash?" She watched them glance at each other. "Apparently yes. So when was I going to find out about it?"

"Well you were doing so well without knowing…." Yun began.

"Look kid, you're so warn out from the last few weeks…." Guan Yu sighed.

"I just need to know what my orders are, leave the rest up to me. I can handle him, it's the one thing I can do well."

"Look, Tong wants to transfer you into Yun's command. Just so that yesterday doesn't happen again." Yu bit his lip.

"If it does, it will happen to Lu Bu. Besides I know him well enough to know that my little control issue was very reassuring to him. He'll be trying harder then ever now to corrupt me. Let me do my job, I'm actually really good at it." She smiled.

"Cal, we just don't want you getting hurt." Yun explained.

"I'm still alive aren't I? I've been doing this since I was nine; give me a little bit of credit. I might as well embrace what I am instead of denying it."

"Nope." Tong plopped down next to her and put his hat on her head.

"Tong…."

"Nope." He touched her nose and reached for some fried noodles.

"Funny Zhou Yu seems to under the impression that our alliance hinges on my ability to hobble Lu Bu." She played with his sandy short hair before realizing it smelled like concubines.

"Like I said before, you don't have to do anything you don't want to because of us." Tong grabbed her hand and put it back on his head.

"I want to help Liu Bei, anyway I can. Anyhow, I know how to get to him, that's why I survived Luo Yong. He's very simple and he needs someone to be his common sense. Let me be the little devil that sits on his shoulder." She grabbed Tong and Yun in her arms and squeezed them. "So stop treating me like I'm innocent and need your protection."

"Alright, as senior officer here I'm ordering you to keep after Lu Bu." Guan Yu nodded. "I'll leave the methods to your discretion since you seem to work best that way."

"Did I just beg to be left under that asshole's command?" she laughed. "I have lost my mind."

"Aren't you all adorable fawning over your favorite officer." Ying giggled and sat down next to Pang Tong. "And after all this time I've known you you've never treated me so nice."

"Sure I did, I pissed off your husband. Surely that must be worth something." Tong offered his check up to her for a kiss.

"Oh all right you cloaked midget." Ying gave him a friendly peck.

Cal laughed as Zhou Tai stopped mid track and stared at the table before continuing on his way. "I'm going to mingle."

"Why, I thought you wanted to sleep tonight?" Ying asked as the boys gave her a dirty look. "Really, it's her fault I'm like this now."

----------

"If you hurt her, I'm going to kill you." Cal leaned back against the banquet table and winked at Zhou Tai without a hint of emotion on her face.

"Really?" He looked her over and sensed she had to ability to do what she boasted. "So what are you?"

"An assassin and a damned good one at that."

"Funny I usually preempt my former occupation with ex-." He took a drink and stood up straight. She wasn't intimidated by his size despite being an inch shorted then Ying.

"I wish I could…"

"Can't give it up or don't want to?"

She cocked her head and stood up. "Don't act like your past life doesn't haunt your dreams or dictate your actions and suspicions."

"I'm not the preachy type."

"Are you going to treat her like she deserves?" She reached out for a meat bun.

Tai grabbed her wrist. "You know I will or else you wouldn't have pushed us together. What's with this line of questioning?"

"They're all so quick to fall in love. Someone has to be suspicious for them." She pulled away from him and took the meat bun.

"She loves me?" Tai asked genuinely surprised. "So soon?"

Cal shrugged, "She may not know it yet, but…." She looked up into his hopeful eyes, "When the realization hits her like a boulder, I want to know you'll be there for her. Will you?"

"Of course."

"Good because her husband is an asshole and she deserves someone better." She looked over at Lui Bei and Sun Shang Xiang who were trying to be frisky without getting caught. Shang currently had her hand under the back flap on Bei's tunic.

"And who is looking after you, if I may ask?" Tai suddenly felt sorry for her. He knew how difficult it was to walk away from something that you knew was wrong. He had come to Wu after disbanding his crew and selling his ship to his quartermaster, trying to leave the wave of destruction and evil behind him. His soul still yearned for the sea, but his vow to Sun Quan was stronger.

"I have my duty, that is my passion." She said it in a monotone that was chilling to hear and the smiled sweetly. "Treat her right." She patted him on the back as she walked to a solitary table in the corner.

----------

"Did you hear a toast?" Gan Ning looked around confused.

"Toast, where? Is it sesame or shrimp?" Zhang Fei tried to sit up but fell back down into the barrels.

"A toast, dumbass. You know. Blah blah blah, cheers." Ning hiccupped.

"Cheers!" Shouted Fei loud enough to interrupt Sun Jian midsentence.

"Cheers!" Shang lifted her glass taking advantage of the opportunity to end her father's senseless speech.

"I wasn't finished…" Sun Jian grumbled as he reluctantly followed suit and drank his wine.

"My turn!" Ce jumped up.

"They're all going to want a turn aren't they?" Shang hissed to her husband.

"We are amongst a very talkative group of generals." Lui Bei sighed and took her hand in his. "Now stop grabbing my thigh."

"Twenty years Bei….hey do you have another name I can call you?"

"Well my mother used to call me Xuande" he admitted.

"Xuande….oooohh..that's sexy." She purred.

"You keep saying twenty years, but honestly, were you really this horny when you were five?"

"Don't get technical on me or I'll remind you that when I was five you were twenty years old."

"So twenty years, huh?"

----------

"All by yourself?" Lu Bu sat down to Cal's right on the bench. "Guess no one would want to sit next to you after yesterday anyhow."

"Funny, it doesn't seem to bother you much."

"I've killed two of my step fathers, one for a horse the other for a woman. My morals are as questionable as yours."

"Oh we're having the daily dose of morality discussion now, are we? Then we better get more wine."

"No I wanted to tell you that your fight was….interesting. I was wondering what it would take to show your true self." He remained stoic.

"Turn you on did it?" She watched him squint at her.

"Damn right."

"Well go find your barn whore, because I'm not interested." She reached for her wine glass but Lu Bu's hand stopped her.

"That wasn't a request."

"Maybe I haven't made it clear enough to you, General, but let me put it simply so you can comprehend. I serve Liu Bei, not you. I'm only under your command on the battlefield and I will not be under you anywhere else. Got it?"

"Like I said, that wasn't a request." He glared down at her and growled.

---------

"Psst." Ying threw a meat bun at Tai as he listened to Sun Quan blither on about commitment and love in an analogy involving strongholds and guardtowers and a random supply team.

"Hey lady, I'm trying to pretend to be interested here." He snuck back into the shadows where she waited. When he determined no one could see them he passionately kissed her as it they had been separated for years.

"Let's go, I can't wait any longer." She ran her hands all over him trying to find a spot where she could touch his skin.

"I thought strategists were supposed to be patient." He leaned her scythe against the wall and took her hands in his, kissing them both.

"Did I tell you how much I love your arms….so strong." She kissed his bicep and gentle sucked on it to leave her mark.

"I guess Sun Quan can do without protection right now." He pulled her face up to meet his kiss and then he felt her lean up to him on the tips of her toes.

"I'll meet you on the beach." She broke off the kiss, grabbed her weapon and ran out the door.

"What a woman!" He smiled to himself and backpedaled through a doorway into a long corridor. With his long quick stride he easily made it out the north entrance without being noticed.

----------

"And much like the lessons of Sun Tzu…" Zhuge Liang continued onto yet another point in his boring speech.

"This is all because no one listens to him, isn't it? That's why he's punishing us!" Shang whined and thumped her head on the table.

Zhuge Liang looked over at the young girl having a fit. "My lord," he whispered, "Perhaps you should take her outside and calm her. Don't worry, I'll read from my book _The Way of the General_. I'll cover for you."

"Thank you Kongming, you are too kind." Liu Bei smiled politely and looked to his new wife. "Come along dear, let's get some fresh air." He winked at her and broke out in a wide smile.

"But, the speech, I'll miss it!" Shang gasped and tried to feint panic.

"By god, out of all my children I had to send away the most talented." Sun Jian mused as he watched Lui Bei 'help' Shang towards the door.

"You mean, " Sun Ce used his fingers to emphasize, " 'gifted', right pops?"

"Sure son."

----------

"Fuck off." Cal grumbled as Lu Bu tried to intimidate her.

"I pulled you into my bed by your hair before, don't think I won't do it again." He tightened his grip on Sky scorcher and thumped it on the ground.

"Oh you are good with women aren't you? No wonder Diao Chan left your sorry ass as soon as she could."

"I told you never to talk about her."

"Why general, one might think you still love the woman who ripped your heart out. You are a fool." Cal saw his face fill with rage. She really didn't care, most dangerous man in China or not, she wasn't taking his shit.

"I told you…."

"So really, how hard did she have to work to manipulate you? Can't imagine it being hard, you being such a simple minded…." She stopped as Lu Bu swung his Halberd at her neck. She in turn took out her knife and put it to his throat as he lodged the weapon in the wall. The blade was close enough to cut her neck a bit as she turned to stare him down. He was heaving with fury and she focused on him. "Now, let me promise you this. When I come for you, you will not see it coming. I will lurk in the shadows until you put your empty head to rest on your pillow and settle into sleep. Then my 'friend' you will feel this pinch at your throat and you will know it is me, and I will want you awake so I can watch your face. I love to watch as the horror of the situation is realized when this blade slices through your windpipe and artery and you cannot breathe right and all you see is your own blood spewing forth from your throat. And I will sit there, on your chest and lick your blood off my lips as you die wallowing in your own blood. Then I will leave you there for your loved ones to find you, laid out like a slaughter lamb. Then we will have fought on my terms and I will come out the victor." She spun the knife between her fingers and then slammed it into the table without taking her eyes off him.

"Next time it won't be a warning and my blade won't miss." He glanced down at his hand to see her knife wobbling a mere 1/16 of an inch away from the webbing between his index and middle fingers. Swiftly he took his mighty blade out of the wall and got in her face to whisper, "I'll be waiting." Then he got up and left.

Lui Bei and Sun Shang Xiang watched the confrontation uneasily with everyone else. They were closest to the door that Lu Bu storm out and noticed the deafening silence that had befallen the gathering. "Come Sunny, that will be all for now."

"That was awesome." She smiled now that her friend had won a bout with Lu Bu.

"Let's go." He guided her out the door.

"As I was saying…"Zhuge Liang continued. "Chasing Evils- There are five types of harm in decadence among national armed forces. First,…" (The real Zhuge Liang is probably rolling in his grave knowing that I'm using his actual text in this fan fiction. But oh well, that's what you get for letting Liu Chan live.)

-----------

"Tai, I can't grab a hold of anything! It's all sand." Ying complained and clung to him instead.

"Then stop your squirming." He chuckled and bit her neck playfully.

"I can't….you're thrusting so hard." She threw her head back and gulped.

"I can stop…"he ran his tongue up to her ear and bit her earlobe gently.

"No, No, don't stop." She panted and looked at his gorgeous dark eyes and then buried her head in the sand again. "Oh, god, don't stop."

"What? Stop you say?" He felt her nails dig into his arms and back.

"No!" She grunted and moaned. "If you even joke about that I'm putting my scythe through your heart."

"Ooohhhh, a bad girl are you?" He smiled as she looked into his eyes again. "I've never had this good of a time before, really."

"I certainly haven't." she rubbed his well toned ass. "You're incredible." moan

"Oh, what if I do this then?" He traced her lips with his expert tongue before forcefully kissing her as they both came to climax together.

------------

"Alright Xuande, off with those clothes!" Shang threw him into the bed and struggled with her dress.

"Why don't we slow down a bit?" Lui Bei sat up on the edge of the bed and pulled his new wife over to him. "Let me help you."

"I can get it!" she replied stubbornly.

"Sunny, wouldn't it be better to let me do it?" he ran his hands over her hips and watched his subtle point make an impact.

Shang clapped happily. "Yes Yes! You do it!"

"Turn around then, all the buttons are on the back." He let her spin around and tried to work the annoyingly complex buttons on the back of her dress. "Who made this, monks?"

"Quicker!" she jumped up and down.

Bei smacked her on the ass. "Stop, you're not helping."

"Ohhh, do that again." She giggled.

"Alright, that should be all of them." He announced and watched her wiggle out of the dress. He caught his breath as she turned to him stark naked.

"Your turn!" She ripped his sash off and began to unbutton his tunic. "And I won't take as long."

"You're beautiful." He mumbled as the naked woman tore his clothes off.

"That's not helping me get your pants off now is it?" She took the opportunity to take her two index fingers and poke him in the nipples. "He he, Nipples!"

"Hey!" He tried to protest but she shoved him back on the bed.

"Pants….hmmmm… boots first." She dropped down to her knees and threw the boots against the wall. "Ok, pants!" With nimble fingers she worked the buttons faster then humanly possible then she jumped up straight. "Now, for the unveiling."

"Hmmmm?" He wasn't paying attention as he was watching her breasts bounce.

"Pants, no more!" She pulled them by the cuffs and slid them off his body. "Yeah! Naked husband!" She leapt onto him and kissed him.

"Now you need to take it easy…" he let his hand wander up her side.

"Easy huh?" She grabbed his hands and put them on her breasts. "Ok, easy for you now." She leaned back into him and kissed him.

"Now this isn't some kind of race, Sunny." Liu Bei couldn't help but play with her breasts that had been placed in his hands.

"Why you need time to warm up?" She asked coyly, "Cause your old right?"

"No. There's more to this then you think." He felt her take his penis in her hand, "And that needs to be handled with care."

Shang pulled away and began to inspect him. "How do you live with this between your legs?"

"It's not always hard dear." He picked her up off of him gently and laid her down on the bed. "Now, can I take over?"

"But I want to play with it!" She pouted.

"Relax." He smiled and lulled her into a calmer state with a seductive kiss. "You've got the rest of your life to do whatever you want with it. But tonight, I'm taking the lead."

---------

"Well, I think that fulfills my duties for the night." Cal grabbed Guan Yu's shoulder. "I'm heading to bed."

"You sure do interpret your orders uniquely." Yu smiled.

"Well, I did spare you from Zhuge Liang's book reading for a few minutes, be thankful." She stretched and headed for the door.

"Types of Generals, "Zhuge Liang continued over the obviously disinterested murmuring, "There are nine types of generals."

"Who's up for some chess?" Zhao Yun asked happily.

"I could spare some time…."Pang Tong smiled

Cal walked out into the rain and looked up at the sky letting the water soak her hair. A Flash of lightning lit up the night and she looked ahead of her to see the figure of Lu Bu. "Not now." She moaned.

"You asked for it."

"I want to go to bed!" she hollered at him.

"I'll make it interesting." He javelined Sky Scorcher into the ground in front of her. "Go ahead, use mine."

She looked at the huge weapon and guessed it to weigh about ninety pounds. It had to be heavier than the Blue Moon Dragon, at eighty pounds; Lu Bu had to have everything one step better then everything else. "Oh so you're going to use mine?" She asked doubtingly

"Give it to me." He held out his hand.

"Fine, but after we're done and I loose, I'm going to bed alone." She threw the Celestial Blade at him and tried to pick the halberd out of the ground. "Holy shit, my horse doesn't way this much." She almost fell over when the blade dislodged.

"This is, cute." Lu Bu held the rapier in his hand and played with it a while to get the feel of the weapon.

Cal turned towards him Sky Scorcher balanced over her shoulder and both hands holding it steady so it didn't flip over her back. She laughed when Lu Bu walked towards her with her weapon, "You look ridiculous."

"Now you know what everyone thinks when they see you." He took a swing at her but the rapier went flying out of his hand and into a tree next to Guan Yu's head. Yu looked aggravated to begin with, but now he was downright pissed. "Sorry, it's a bit lighter then I'm used to."

Cal hefted the halberd up and tried to swing it at Lu Bu with every bit of might she had, but it slammed back into the ground with a thud She looked up at Lu Bu with water pouring off her nose and grinned, "Switch?"

"Yeah." He pulled his weapon out of the ground effortlessly and swung it around happy to have it back in his hands.

Cal sauntered over to Guan Yu and smiled, "Chess match was boring, was it?" She pulled her blade out of the tree.

"I'm regretting my decision more and more each minute." He looked over at Lu Bu angrily.

"Excellent!" She smiled and turned back to Lu Bu. "Let's get this over with huh?"

"Not anytime soon." He ran at her splashing mud all over himself and attacked.

----------

"Let's just lay here for a little while." Ying lay by Zhou Tai's side, her head resting on his left shoulder and her arm draped across his chest. As the rain fell down on their naked tired bodies she traced the outline of his abdominal muscles with her finger.

"You're the most amazing woman….I never thought there could be anyone so perfect." He brushed a few soaking wet strands of hair from her face and kissed her forehead.

"Tai, I never want this to end." She let her finger trace his masculine nipple and then up his neck to the scar she loved so much.

"It will have to eventually. We're going to go our separate ways after we fight Cao Cao, you know that." He pulled her closer to him as he said it, hoping that he could will the moment to last forever.

"But afterwards, we'll see each other again." Her finger ran over his lips and she smiled as he nibbled on it before taking it into his mouth.

Tai let her have her finger back then looked up at the sky to watch the lightning. "I'm not letting you go Ying, so we'll find a way. I promise."

"If Wu should turn on Shu……"

"Then we'll just have to fight it out and live through it all for each other." He closed his eyes and prayed it never came to that.

"But for now, let's enjoy each other." She swung herself on top of him and bent down to lick his scar.

-----------

"This is nice and all, but can we do it?" Shang batted her eyelashes playfully as Liu Bei looked up at her with a smirk.

"Mmmm…I don't know if you're ready yet." He rubbed her inner thigh again and she gave a giggle and an 'epp'. He looked at her childlike eyes and asked, "Well are you?"

"Yes, oh yes! Please!" She almost bounced out of the bed.

"Easy." He touched her lips with his. "Now, this might hurt a bit. But tell me if you want me to stop." He rolled over onto of her and smiled encouragingly.

"Xuande, you've already stuck your fingers in me, so how bad can it be?" She felt her breath quicken as he kissed her lovingly.

"Alright, are you ready?"

"Yes!" She wrapped her arms around his neck and watched his face as he gently worked himself into her. "Ohhhh."

"Ohh?" he asked panicked. "Are you ok?"

"It's ok, it has to hurt before it gets better right? That's what they say about everything. Go ahead."

He watched her face grimace slightly and looked over her with worried eyes. "Sunny?"

"I'm ok….awwww" then she opened her eyes and looked up at him with a smile. "Hey that wasn't that bad!"

"Honey, I need to back out and then keep doing that, are you going to be alright?"

"Yes, ….just go slow. Oh and Bei?"

"Yes love?"

"Stop asking me if I'm ok. I'm a warrior, I can handle a little pain."

----------

Cal hit her knees and splashed mud all over herself. She was completely exhausted and didn't even have the strength to hold her weapon upright anymore. She flopped over into the mud and looked up at the sky, it had stopped raining. When did that happen?

"Now if you did as I asked, you'd be laying in a soft bed with a smile on your face instead of…" Lu Bu knelt beside her then took his finger and whipped a line across her cheek and then shook the mud off. "mud. But you have to do things your way."

She looked up at him and closed her eyes. Somewhere under this same sky Tai and Ying were falling in love and Shang and Bei were making love. Then there was her and Lu Bu who were doing everything in their power to piss each other off. She opened her eyes again and looked at him, but she would do her duty and if that meant getting the shit kicked out of her to keep his interest, so be it. She wanted to go to sleep right there but a part of her knew Lu Bu would take advantage of her while she slept. "What do you want?"

"You to realize I am a man to be feared, not toyed with." He stood up and sloshed off.

"Alright kid, let's dunk you in the river then put you to bed." Guan Yu lifted her gently out of the mud and took her rapier out of her hand. He slipped the weapon back into its scabbard squirting mud all over his face. With a sigh he looked down at the young woman who had fallen asleep already. "I hope this is all worth it."

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Chapter 18 will be the Battle of Chi Bi and I have a great dislike for this battle so I may take a bit to write it. (I promise less than a week). In order to avoid writing it I've started on a Dynasty/Samurai warriors cross-over I hope to have started by tonight. A personal challenge to see if I can actually post something PG-13.


	18. The Battle of Chi BI

Chapter 18

The Battle of Chi Bi

            Yue Ying woke up to the sounds of a rooster sweetly crowing and Zhou Tai snoring like Zhang Fei.  She looked over at her handsome lover and smiled, he was absolutely the most magnificent man she had ever laid eyes upon.  He must have felt her move because his eyes flickered open.  Before he could clear his throat to say anything she put her finger on his lips.  Gently she kissed his jaw and made her way to his mouth, taking his bottom lip into her mouth and sucking on it.  "Good morning."

            "I'll say." He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her on top of him.  "Ying…."

            "Why so serious?" She kissed the top of his nose and worked her way up the bridge of his nose to his forehead.

            "I want to tell you…" He looked into her dazzling eyes, "Ying, darling, I love you."

            "Oh…Tai." She kissed him again.  "I love you too, I've never felt like this before, it's incredible. You're incredible.  If we had only met…." She let the sentence drift off.

            "I was a different man back then anyway, you wouldn't have liked what you got." He cupped her cheek in his hand. "But I'm not a man who gives up easily so don't count me out."

            "I would never do that." She put her head back down on his chest. "Hold me a little longer before I have to go back to camp."

            "With pleasure." He watched her nestle her head against his neck and run her soft hands over his chest.  She'd go back to camp, back to Zhuge Liang.  And he would wait for the moment to sneak away to be with her, stealing away her affections from her husband.  He was going to do whatever he had to in order to get what he wanted wasn't he?  It was all beginning to sound a little too familiar, like the life he used to live.  Stealing, cheating and taking whatever he wanted no matter what the cost.  But this was different, dammit.  He genuinely loved her and her husband was an asshole, but did that make it any less wrong?

--------------

            CROW

            "Bei wake up!" Shang jumped on her husband's chest and slapped his face slightly to get his attention.

            "Mmmmmm?" He looked up at her exhausted.  After the princess got over the initial trauma of her first time, she was after him to do it again and again. "Again?"

            "Yup!" So wake up and get it up." She slid down to his crotch and grabbed his penis. "Come on it's already hard."

            "It always is when I wake up." He rubbed his eyes. "Why don't we get something to eat first."

            "Why don't we have sex, then get something to eat?" She smiled and rubbed his thighs. "Please Xuande?"

--------------- 

            Cal clung to her pillow and slowly opened her eyes as a rooster crowed outside, the same damned black rooster that crowed every morning in the Shu camp.  One of these days she would find him and cut that noisy head right off of his stupid neck.  Then she saw a blur of green and a touch of black fuzz.  She picked her head up and looked over at Guan Yu who had fallen asleep in a chair.  He had been watching over her, how sweet.  Then she began to form more coherent thoughts and she remembered who else had watched over her once, Pang Tong and more distantly Xiahou Dun.  What wonderful men she had in her life, so annoyingly protective, but great none the less.  What odd men to wake up next to.  Better then the men she usually slept with then woke up next to, she had to admit. "Yu?"

            The man woke up instantly and looked at her peering over her pillow at him.  "Sleep well, kid?"

            She nodded and then smiled, "How much do you want to bet our lord didn't?"

            "I'm rescinding your orders." He looked at her and saw the same collected smile she always had.

            "How did I guess that was coming?"

            "It's probably better if he goes his separate way anyhow; I'm beginning to sense something unsettled in him."

            "Now you sound like Pang Tong."

---------------

            Liu Bei was snoring beside a plate of eggs and bacon when Ying arrived for breakfast.  Shang pet his head then stole his plate.  "Hi Ying!"

            Ying smiled and looked at the exhausted emperor and laughed, "What did you do to him?"

            "Our lord's stamina is in question." Pang Tong sat himself next to Yue Ying and offered her some of his bacon.

            "Poor Bei." Shang pet his head again and smiled. "I'll have him back in shape soon."

            "Well we better tone down the conversation; here comes the queen bitch now." Pang Tong shoveled eggs into his mouth

            "Nice of you to stay for my speech, Ying." Zhuge Liang rolled the 'ing' off his tongue like a cracking whip.  _Nice of you to come home too._

            "You've read me that book over and over Liang, I prefer the original Sun Tzu to your interpretation anyhow." She looked over at Zhao Yun who was coming back from an early ride.

            "Ohhhh, breakfast that's not fried rice." He clicked to his horse and ran off to the stables, "Come Tsunami, I don't want to get left out."

            "Too late." Tong noticed Guan Yu and Cal coming towards the table.  Between the two of them they could eat the Wu territories into poverty.

            "In case any of you were wondering, Zhou Yu and I have devised a strategy.  We will attack Cao Cao at Chi Bi, with the combined navies." Liang settled into his chair and fanned out his robes more comfortably.

            "Woo. Boats." Cal sat down and took a plate from the cook, Kin.  "What's up with him?" Cal looked over as Liu Bei's snoring got louder.

            "My poor Bei's tired." Shang pouted.

            "Wonder how that happened." Cal muttered under her breath then looked over at Liang, "So I guess I get to be on a boat with Lu Bu again, huh?"

            "As a matter of fact…." Liang smiled daggers at her.

            "Marvelous!  Another trip down the river Styx for me!"

            "Hey girls, let's let the boys chat amongst themselves for a while." Ying smiled and took her breakfast with her as she meandered over to a tree.

            Cal took her plate and patted Guan Yu on the back, "Thanks again."

            "I'll be back sweetie." Shang kissed Liu Bei on the temple and skipped off to the tree.

            "Who wants to go first?" Cal asked the two excited women.

            "Tai told me he loved me." Ying confessed.

            "Bei is so cute when he's naked." Shang sighed.

            "What? So soon?" Cal was astonished that the ex-pirate was so quick to admit his feelings.  People fall in love quick around here, real quick.

            "Nothing wrong with falling in love in two days." Shang defended the idea.  Those damned Qiaos had their boys instantly; at least she and Ying took 48 hours.

            "Mmmmm….Tai." Ying toyed with her toast.

            "You think someone will wake Bei up?" Shang looked back at her sleeping husband and frowned.

            "Ying, where's this going to go?" Cal asked curiously.  She hated Zhuge Liang, but the fact was he was a genius and Shu needed his mind.  If his wife left, she suspected he'd seek revenge and take them all along for the hellish ride.

            "I don't know, but we'll figure it out."

----------------

            "Well, considering the recent addition of Lady Sun we're going to have to alter the boat arrangements.  So Zhao Yun and Pang Tong, you'll be on boat five now." Zhuge Liang slammed his notebook shut and looked around at the officers gathered around the docks.

            "Not going to try and weasel out of it?" Lu Bu asked Cal as she stroked Ares ears.

            "Why bother, I'm going to be under your command at Chi Bi anyhow."

            "You better leave your weapons in your cabin, tonight I start your martial arts training."

            "That's smart, I can't beat anyone in the three kingdoms except Lu Xun and Zhuge Liang and you want to stop practicing."

            "I think you could take on the Qiaos too.  Possibly even Sun Ce, he's very irrational." Lu Bu shrugged, "But that's about it."

            "Zhen Ji, I could wipe the floor with her too." Cal smiled, "And believe me I will find a way to get that chance too."

            "Xu Zhu, he's slow." Lu Bu counted on his fingers. "So seven people, five of which are currently allies.  Now there's something to brag about.  Training starts at five sharp." He walked up the plank leading Red Hare.

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            As the fleet sailed down the Chang Jiang, Sun Jian stood on the flagship overlooking the mobile battlefield.  Zhou Yu was with Lu Xun on his boat discussing the coming battle and it comforted him.  They would not let the matter rest until the battle was well on it way to being over.  Zhou Yu was skeptical at Zhuge Liang's ability to conjure the winds and wasted no time in planning an alternative.  Lu Xun was obsessing on the fire and couldn't seem to move past his favorite element.  He looked over the two men and surveyed the other ships.  His two sons were wrestling on the deck of the second ship with a watchful Zhou Tai sitting on the quarter deck.  Something about the ex-pirate wasn't right, he was preoccupied.  Jian scratched his beard and tried to figure out what it was.  Must be a woman, he had seen him talking with the little roman girl.  That must be it.  He grinned, she must have done something interesting to him if he was still thinking about it.  Then his smile faded, he hadn't seen Lui Bei or his daughter in days.  He kept telling himself it was fine, they were married; it was what they were supposed to do.  But it wasn't ok, that was his baby girl.  She wasn't supposed to grow up that fast and she certainly was supposed to be that excited about doing anything with a man fifteen years older than her.  Then an explosion distracted him.  Huang Gai had gotten fed up with Gan Ning and blasted him off the boat.  _Pirates can swim, can't they?_

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            Zhou Tai stared off into the sunset, trying not to think about anything.  So many thoughts ran through his head.  One minute it was about Yue Ying lying in his arms, the next about his ship, _Setsuna_.  He touched his katana as the image of the slim lined sloop entered his head.  When it came time to sell her, he used the money to buy his weapon and it only seemed fitting he transfer the name.  Was it an even trade?  A free and wild life for an honorable structured one?  Of course, he had to tell himself all the time; it was wrong what he used to do.  Now he was back on the water and it brought those yearnings back, the call of the sea.  No. He had sworn his loyalty to Sun Quan.  He was a man of his word.  But how good it the word of a man who's trying to steal another man's wife?  Ying crept back into his thoughts, beautiful, clever and thoughtful.  She was everything he ever dreamed of and she returned his feelings.  If he loved her, how could he do this to her? Make her wait for him, until the time was right?  When would that time be, if ever? He noticed a flash then heard a popping sound.  Huang Gai had finally taught Gan Ning a lesson.  Tai sighed; it was lunatics like Ning that gave pirates a bad name.  He walked down to the main deck and grabbed a loose line.  He knew most pirates couldn't swim and Ning was probably not one of the exceptions.

----------

            As the boats dropped anchor, Lu Bu scratched his head sleepily.  He looked over the quaint little section of the river, then down at the tranquil water. This was a ridiculous idea; naval attacks should be left up to pirates.  Boats annoyed him, he didn't know how to operate them, and anything he didn't excel at made him very angry when it was obvious he had to use it in battle.  Why contaminate something so great with the toys of others.

            "You look pissed."  Cal walked up next to him and looked out at the calm seas. "Hopefully it's something I did."

            "No."

            "Pity."

            "Here." He thrusted a shield at her. 

It was a small shield in comparison to the one's used by the Legions or even Cao Ren.  As she put her arm through the hold, she couldn't help but be impressed by the weight of it.  It was absolutely perfect, as if it had been made to fit her.  Only problem was it was decorated in red trim. "Where'd this come from?"

            "I took it out of Sun Jian's armory.  These too." He handed her a pair of bracers.

            "What happened to you last night?" She asked incredulously as she put the bracers on.  "Some nice dreams about Diao Chan or something?"

            "You earned them." He tried to walk away but she grabbed his arm.

            "Why now?"

            "Because you've gained enough experience to be able to equip them." He said as if it was the dumbest question he had ever heard.  "Oh and get your bodyguards to paint that green or else someone might recognize it."

            "What else?" She waited because he had the look like he wanted to add something.

            "We're even now.  You saved my life and I saved yours." He disappeared into his cabin.

            So that was it?  He trained her not to manipulate her, but to pay her back for Xia Pi.  She never though Lu Bu to be one who would allow himself to feel indebted to anyone.  Not that she wasn't thankful for the training; it certainly was something that she could rely on to save her ass.  She looked thoughtfully at the water.  He was getting restless and he did not mask it well.  Maybe Yu was right, let him go.  He was a bomb with a questionable fuse and when he popped it was best done away from Shu.  She looked down at the shield, a real honorable weapon, then down at her rapier and began to smile.  There was a glimmer of hope here; perhaps she wasn't destined to be a murderer all her life.  With the training that Lu Bu had forced upon her and these new items, she was actually turning out to be a pretty damned good fighter.  If she overlooked that mishap with Zhou Yu….well that had been a temper problem.  Something easily corrected later one she ironed out the defects in her character.  Then there was she had a phenomenal group of men and women supporting her.  So this was what family was….

------------

            "Tong, where are you going?" Ying asked as Liang busied himself at the alter to prepare to call the winds. 

            "I'm off to work.  Don't miss me too much we wouldn't want to make your husband jealous." The zany little man trotted off on his simple bay horse and headed off to the north.

            "He's going to chain Cao Cao's boats together." Liang didn't bother to look up at her.

            "Then someone should go with him." Her concern was evident in her voice.

            "Oh, and I'm sure you'd love to abandon me." He snapped.  "Maybe you'll get lucky and I'll be cut down so you can run off with your lover."

            "Liang…."

            "Do what you want." He waved his hand at her and began to pray.

--------

            "Zhuge Liang will call the winds and he assures me that the winds will blow." Zhou Yu looked over the map.

            "Well he always does blow a lot of hot air." Zhang Fei yawned.

            "Once the winds blow Gan Ning will ferry Huang Gai across to Cao Cao's boats under the pretense of defecting.  Then we will set fire to their ships.  The winds will blow into their position and incinerate the Wei Armada, and with the help of Pang Tong they will be linked and unable to go anywhere.  On this day we will crush Wei." Zhou Yu smiled encouragingly.

            "Fire. I bet that's your idea, little one." Cal whispered at Lu Xun.

            "I'm not little.  And there's nothing wrong with fire, it is a legitimate tactical attack." The young strategist almost screamed as his blood began to boil.    

            "Mmm, until you get you first pubic hairs." Cal watched him grind his teeth.

            "Now Cal, everyone has to have their signature attacks.  For Lu Xun it is obviously the fire attack." Guan Yu smiled a big beautiful smile to alleviate the tension his young friend had created.

            "And for Zhuge Liang it's running away." Zhao Yun laughed.

            "No No, its retreat then ambush, get your terminology right." Cal corrected.

            "Can I say how nice it is going to be to not have to hear his whining today?" Shang clapped. "And I've only had to deal with him at one breakfast."

            "You haven't seen anything yet.  Trust me.  Three woman in this camp and he's the one that wears the dress." Cal smiled.  "So where will you be today?"

            "Protecting my husband of course." She hugged her man.

            "Good thing, I always get in so much trouble." Liu Bei squeezed his new wife and looked over at Sun Jian who had a hurt lost look on his face.  There was a time not so long ago when Lady Sun was her father's protector.

            "So where are we?" Lu Bu pushed up to the map and grunted. "Fine." He turned and left.

            "Oh good, I get to go protect us from him.  And he's bitchy, Hurrah." Cal rolled her eyes and stood up.  She straightened out her vest and adjusted her belt then grabbed her new shield

            Lui Bei caught her arm and whispered, "He's about ready to leave us, just let him go if he wants to go quietly."

            "Thanks." She couldn't help but feel wanted, this was kind of nice.  She ran off to catch up with Lu Bu.

---------

            "So?" Cal asked as he mounted Red Hare.

            "Middle." He waited for her to mount her grey and then turned off to the north.  "We push up to the main row of boats then you go right and I'll go left.  Zhen Ji's out there someone on the coast, enjoy."

            "You are being mighty nice to me." She adjusted her shield.

            "Don't embarrass me again."

            "What's up with you?" She asked curiously only to get a furious look from her commander.

            "Nothing."

            "If you don't tell me I'm telling Shang's bodyguards you have syphilis.  That ought to make the next few weeks pretty boring."

            "Fine, you want to know?" He pulled Red Hare to a halt and leaned down to her and growled. "This is fucking ridiculous.  Real battles aren't fought on barges.  People who listen to the nonsense of two girly-looking strategists don't deserve to have armies or land…."

            "Oh." She smiled.  "Resentful are we?"

            "If I had what Sun Jian has at my fingertips, I would be in control of China right now."

            "I'm not so crazy about this plan either.  If the winds don't blow….well it's going to get a bit toasty around here.   But I know I'm not a strategist, I'm a soldier.  And soldiers follow orders."

            "We're not the same then." He asked Hare to move on.

            "Aren't we? Come on Lu Bu, people that should be rulers care for their people.  Neither one of us can keep half a dozen bodyguards alive for ninety minutes.  And strategists, well they actually think things through.  We just go off of instinct and charge headlong into battle every time.  Let them do their jobs, let us do ours."

            "So you want to be a lackey all your miserable life?"

            "No, but I know what I'm good at.  And the less I have to think about, the better I do my job."

            "And you always follow orders don't you, little hypocrite?" He stopped at the designated boat and looked over the Wei troops in front of him.  They saw him and began to fidget. 

            "I prefer to think that orders are left up to us to interpret." She smiled as he cocked an eyebrow at her. "If I happen to interpret the procedure differently then intended, well then someone has to go work on their communication skills.  However I usually get the gist of everything."

            "Kill?"

            "Kill." She smiled and looked over the enemy and when sub-generals emerged from the mass of troops she drew her rapier and said, "After you."

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            "Liang, I can't just let him go into enemy territory alone." Yue Ying was worried.  Tong was a capable fighter but if his ploy was seen through….

            "Then go to him." Liang spat. "And stop interrupting me.  I need to concentrate."

            "I'll leave my bodyguards for you then." She turned away and ran down the stairs to her horse.  "Sima Shi?" She looked for her head guard.

            "My lady?"

            "Remain here and protect Zhuge Liang, I'm taking the men and supporting Pang Tong.  If you suspect you will need reinforcements send for me immediately. Du Yu?" She looked to her swiftest guard.

            "Lady Yue?" he bowed.

            "Go to headquarters and tell them of my new position and request that another officer be assigned to Master Zhuge."

            "Yes, ma'am."

            "Go." She mounted her white steed, Falcon, and waved her men on.  Pang Tong would need her, she knew it.

---------

            "Hi there!" Pang Tong moved Fluffy towards Cao Pi.  The little scruffy bay mare trotted on past the Wei commander.

            "Who are you?  I don't recall ever seeing you before." Cao Pi put his hand on his sword.

            "Well you've been so busy with your wife recently; I haven't been able to introduce myself."  Pang Tong tipped his hat to the officer as he moved on.  "I've got to chain the boats together so that they're more stable, see ya!"

            Cao Pi stared at him confused.  It was true, Ji had been very attentive lately.  He shifted uncomfortably in the saddle hoping to find a position that didn't hurt his tender ass, she had been _very_ attentive.  He smiled thinking of her in her slutty blue dress over on the east coastline, then he looked back at the cloaked man, "Hey, you didn't introduce yourself!  Hey!"

            "Forget about the archers Fluffy, they won't hurt us…yet."  He patted the mare and she flickered her ears nervously.

---------

            Ares galloped across the main causeway and picked up speed as Cal turned to look back at Lu Bu.  She didn't see him, all she saw was men flying everywhere.  Oh well, if he left: good riddance.  She turned her attention back to Yu Jin who was waiting on his horse at the end of the bridge.  "Hey aren't you the same guy who snuck up on Liu Bei at Bo Wan Po?" She came to a skidding halt and raised her rapier.

            "Yeah, you want to make something of it?" He raised his sword.

            "Obviously." She backed Ares up so that she could look past him.  And there she was, Miss Wei beauty queen.  Sitting on her pretty little horse, bored as hell. 

            "You have to make it by me first." He saw Cal looking past him towards the lord's daughter-in-law.  Cao Cao would not take that defeat lightly.

            "As you wish." Cal spun Ares to the right and smashed her new shield into Yu Jin's sword and punched him in the chest with her rapier throwing him into the river.  "Now, on to my favorite lady."

---------

            "Put me down you son of a bitch!" Cao Ren fumed as Lu Bu held him in the air with his halberd. 

It was really one of the more enjoyable maneuvers he had come up with while fighting his little minion.   Lu Bu shrugged and twisted the shaft enough to unhook the stubby man and drop off the side of the boat.  "Mmmm, I bet he sinks fast." He looked over at Red Hare who in turn craned his neck over the side of the boat to look at the splashing below.  With a mischievous grin Lu Bu leapt back into the saddle and looked around.  Where to next?   The blue wave of soldiers that emerged from the boat to his right saw him and retreated.  That way.  Cao Ren's remaining two bodyguards tried to fish him out of the river but Lu Bu kicked one in with him and then skewered the other.  It wasn't such a bad day, was it?

---------------

Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were happily moving north, slowly.  They understood their orders and were going to fight everyone that was trying to make their way down to the head honchos.

"You know what we need to do?" Fei asked

"Musou?" Yu asked knowing his brother loved the Double Musou."

"Yup.  OH JUST DIE!" Fei screamed as he launched into an attack.

------------------

"So when do we fight?" Shang asked excitedly as she grabbed Mystique's reins.

"Sunny, we're the army commanders.  We usually stay back and let the fight take its course.  When the situation arises for us to be out there, well we fight then." Liu Bei sat astride Hex Mark and looked to Sun Jian for his take.  He couldn't help but feel weird around him now.  _I guess screwing your friend's daughter does that._

"Yes Shang, your husband is right.  We are not needed now; let your generals fight for you."  Sun Jian waited for her pouting.

Shang crossed her arms and huffed.  "How boring.  Certainly there's fighting somewhere we can go 'supervise'."

"My lords!" Du Yu bowed before the men and continued. "A message from Lady Yue.  She is heading north with her unit to support Pang Tong.  She requests that a replacement be sent to protect Master Zhuge in her stead."

Shang's eyes lit up and looked to her father and her new husband.  Sun Jian looked over to Lui Bei and they gave each other weird looks.  Shang looked around, no was around but…..

"Zhou Tai, would you mind leaving Sun Quan to assist Zhuge Liang for the moment?" Sun Jian asked the quiet pirate.

            Sun Quan sat hopelessly lost on a crate, wishing there was some way he could find his way into a solitary corner of one of the boats.  He needed to take care of things.  He saw Tai's inquisitive glance and waved at him. "Go on, I'll be fine.  Apparently they're going to let my baby sister protect me instead."

            "Sir?" Tai looked over to Sun Jian.

            "Go ahead, general.  Take a portion of Sun Quan's unit with you."  Jian nodded.

            "I'm going with Tai!" Shang shouted at her father.

            "Oh so now it's Tai.  Since when did you two get acquainted?" Quan asked jealous.

            "Uhhh…." Shang was at a loss for words.

            "I believe it was her friend that got acquainted with General Zhou, initially." Jian smiled amused.

            Tai's eyes got wide.  _How?_ "Sir?"

            Shang yelped, "What no, not anyone I know."

            "Come now, I'm not blind." Jian watched Liu Bei's interested face contort in confusion. "I saw you and her at the reception you sly old pirate."

            "Who?" Quan stood up angrily.  This was his only friend and he was not going to let a stupid woman steal him away.

            Tai and Shang exchanged nervous glances and Shang suddenly piped up. "Oh papa! Please, it's just harmless attention really.  They'll break it off soon!"

            "Now, Shang, what General Zhou does is his own business.  I'm just teasing him. I always suspected he was holding out for a different kind of girl, but different breed altogether?  Oh well, good luck to you then."

            "Cal?" Shang asked her father relieved.  "Oh yes, Cal. I guess they figured it out, huh?" She looked back at Tai who was breathing a sigh a relief.

            "Can't put anything past you Lord Sun." He closed his eyes. _That was too close_.

            "Well, enough of my boyish nonsense get going.  We wouldn't want to have Master Zhuge throw a fit."  Jian smiled at Liu Bei and winked.

            Liu Bei smiled at the odd Wu man with the scar and wondered how oblivious he really was to the happenings in his own camp.  "Good luck General.  Sunny, come on let's head to the east bank."

--------------

            Cai Mao looked down at Pang Tong who was shuffling around the boats with a chain in his hands.  "This really is a great idea.  What did you say they call you again?"

            "The Fledging Phoenix.  Kinda catchy huh?" Ting wrapped the last chain around the anchor point and smiled, "That should do the trick."

"Cao Cao will be pleased!" Cai Mao grinned from ear to ear, this was a great plan. 

"Well be sure to mention me, I would love to be in the lord's favor." Tong called Fluffy over with a whistle and trotted back across the boats to the western shore.

"I sure will, this is definitely going to make things easier."

------------------

"Zhen Ji, are we boring you?" Cal slid off of Ares and stood before the Wei woman.

"Oh it's you.  I shall play a requiem for you." She grinned and kicked her horse into a gallop.

"Ji, you've never been woman enough to fight me." Cal ran at her and jumped up at the last second to de-horse her.  It was a lot easier then she thought it would be.  Ji flew out of the saddle, but back flipped midair and landed on her feet.  Cal was waiting.

"Mind your manners, you bitch." Ji scissor kicked and whipped her flute around only to hit a shield.

"Awww…is that the best you can do?"

            Ji jumped back and put her flute to her lips, "You shall pay."

            "Not today." Cal charged and poked at her repeatedly then spun in a circle to toss her. 

            "Ugg….why can't I hit you!" Ji made a stronger attack smacking her flute from side to side.

            "You're fighting with a wind instrument that may be part of it." Cal launched a kick at her then hacked at her with her rapier like Liu Bei had taught her.  It was all coming in handy today as she toyed with the woman she hated for so long.

------------------

            "Fight, fight, fight, me!" Xu Zhu challenged Lu Bu, again.

            "Haven't we been through this nuisance before, fat ass?"

            "Come and get me then!" the large man braced himself.

            "Worthless scum." Lu Bu charged the obnoxious man on horseback so that he could pin him in the corner of the boat, wail on him for about 50 hits, then continue on his way, without ever leaving the comforts of the saddle.  Then the crossbowman showed up.

---------------------

            "Huang Gai is coming to surrender sir!" one of the worthless sub-generals informed his lord.

            Cao Cao watched the battle progress, it was sad.  Both kingdoms had united to attack him, and this was all they could conjure?  With the combined minds of Zhuge Liang and Zhou Yu?  Thinking of strategists, it was about time he went out and found on of his own.  Wei was definitely lacking in the robed fan toting genius category right now, he'd have to ask Dun to find him someone.    "Well if he does surrender then bring him to me, if not cut him down with your archers.  Don't bother me with such trivial nonsense."

            "And the boats have been secured."

            "What do you mean secured?" Cao Cao asked as his eyes began to glow with rage.

---------------------------

            "Master Zhuge, our new support general had arrived…..but he's a Wu general."

            "STOP BOTHERING ME!"

            "Yes sir." Sima Shi backed off, god he hated that man.  He went back over to Zhou Tai and offered his apologies.  "He is busy, however I'm sure our Lady would thank you if she were here."

            _I bet she would.  _"I do appreciate it thank you.  I will post my men to the south a bit, holler if you need me." Tai glanced up at the alter quickly to see the robed man kneeling.  _How easy it would be to just….No. No._  He turned and rode off to the south; it was too tempting especially with him snapping at the guards. 

            "Can I have some wine, PLEASE?" Liang called over his shoulder.

            "Can you whine anymore?" Sima Shi muttered then sent away another guard to fetch the drink for the man.  How could his lady have married such a dick?

-----------------------

            "Are you finished, so soon?" Cao Pi asked as Pang Tong rode past him again.

            "I'm just that good, I guess." He shrugged and kept moving.

            "Stop! Stop him!" Cai Mao screamed as he came screaming at the top of his lungs across the boats.  "It's Pang Tong, it's the enemy!"

            Cao Pi was momentarily shocked-but not by the man's real identity.  He couldn't help but think of how his father would deal with him if he embarrassed him by letting the enemy into their camp.  Cao Cao would behead his heir instantly and probably take his wife for his own.  "No….No!" he turned to his guards, who where equipped with crossbows, "Kill him!"

            Tong readied his staff to blast the men in front of him but they were suddenly swept away in a wave of glistening steel.  Then a figure emerged through the mayhem, it was a proud figure in white and green.  "Why, what a beautiful sight."

            "Come on Tong, no time for that now." Yue Ying smiled and readied her scythe; her charge attack had only knocked the crossbowman over.

            "Well, nice meeting you!" Tong tipped his hat to Cao Pi and trotted over the guards, smacking a few on the heads with his staff.

            "Tong!" Ying snapped, "Now!"

            "Order me around any time pretty lady." He galloped past her.

            "Sometimes he is just so ornery." Ying mounted Falcon and smiled, "Bye."

            "No! Come back!" Cao Pi panicked. "After them! Wait!  Untie the boats, now!  And prepare for an attack!"

            The Colonel of the unit looked at the panicked General, "Which one do you want sir?"

            "The boats, untie the boats!"

--------------------

            Zhen Ji crawled away from Cal and got up, only to trip over one of her dead bodyguards.  "They weren't much of a challenge, either."

            "Cao Cao will have fun with you and I hope I can watch."

            "How kinky, but he'll never take me alive.  But that's for later, so back to you."

            Huang Gai's boat arrived and he was greeted by thirty archers at the dock.

            "What is the meaning of this?  I have come to surrender to Cao Cao!"  Huang Gai looked around and knew something had gone wrong.

            "Well, Cao Cao is pretty pissed about what Pang Tong did to his boats, so…..you're going to pay for it." Cao Hong smirked.

            "Pang Tong?  He's a Shu general, I have nothing to do with him." Gai readied himself for a desperate charge, the attack had to succeed.

            Cal looked down at Zhen Ji and growled, "Dammit, this will have to wait."

            "How irritating…." Ji ran off to the gate.

            Cal whistled for Ares, who came bounding up.  "Let's go crush some archers boy." She jumped into the saddle and hoped she was in time to rescue Huang Gai.

            "Now!" Gai watched his men pop up out of the boat and he lunged up the ramp.  "Arrrgggg!"

            "Hey wait for me!" Gan Ning blew past him ready to hack and maim.

            "Bastards!" Ares plowed through fifteen men as Cal chopped from side to side.  "Arrow shooting bastards!"

----------------------

            Lu Bu wandered around Cao Cao's boats without the slightest idea of where he was.  He was trying in earnest to find the Wei leader, but instead he kept taking wrong turns.  Everywhere he thought there was a walkway to the next boat, there was no such luck.  Then he would see men in blue, privates and a meager Captain, then they would turn and run.  So he would chase them, only to find them gone when he got to the next boat.  He was pissed, Hare was pissed and the first person that he found was going to pay for both of their aggravating experiences.  Then the flames shot up around him, they were coming from the east.  That meant Huang Gai had started the fire attack and the main causeway was to his right.  If he could make his way over there, then he could get to shore and be done with this nautical nonsense.  He galloped Red Hare in the direction of the flames.

--------------

            "ATTACK!" Yue Jin hollered as the Wei ambush party assaulted the seven stars alter.

            "FAN OUT!" Li Dian galloped up behind General Yue

            Zhuge Liang kept his eyes shut, if his concentration was broken now, it would all be for nothing.  The fires had started, the boats were linked and the armies had engaged.  Then there was the miserable little part about Cao Cao seeing through the plans…that bastard.  _Come on wind!_

            "Protect Master Zhuge! At all costs!" Sima Shi screamed only to find himself covered in arrows.  "Sorry I failed you my lady…."

            The remaining bodyguards fell within minutes.  Li Dian smiled as he looked at Zhuge Liang still kneeling at the small alter.  "Zhuge Liang I come for your hea…." His mouth remained open as his head rolled up to the stairs.

            "Mmmmm, funny I came for yours." Zhou Tai had Setsuna back in the scabbard before any Wei men noticed him.  He watched the general's body drop in front of him.  "Next?"

            "Cao Cao will……" Yue Jin saw a flash of light from the blade reflecting the fire behind him.  Then he stumbled backwards into the flames, blood pouring from the gash in his throat.

            "Men, show them the path to the next life." Tai stood up straight and watched his troops cut down the confused Wei attackers. 

            "There is no magic here, the winds will blow." Zhuge Liang stood up with a tired smile and looked down at the Wu general who had saved his life.  Slowly he descended the stairs and looked at the man.  He did not like the feeling that he got.  "I owe you my thanks….for doing my wife's job."

            Tai grunted, there were so many insults there that he didn't want to think about it.  He looked down at the 'sleeping dragon' and glared at him.  Feeling the shorter man fidget he walked off, enough said.

------------------

            "Xuande, do you love me?" Shang asked.

            "Why yes, of course I do." He smiled and reached out for her hand as they walked across the linked boats.

            "Then let me fight.  It's what I love to do, you know that."

            "Sunny, I thought you wanted to protect me." He knew it was a shitty argument, but he couldn't think of anything better.

            "You can do better then that.  Give me a division, just like I used to have in Wu."

            "I know you used to…." He caught her angry eyes.  She wouldn't give up her past life no matter what.  She loved her weapons, she loved to fight and she had a really nasty temper.  "If you take Cal as your sub-general." He caved; it would be a losing battle anyhow.  The princess was used to getting her way and he was a lovesick fool who would never resist her whiles.

            "Really?" Shang's face glowed. "Can I have Ying too?  Then I can have a complete army, strategist and all!"

            "Now you want an army, I thought you were just asking for a division.  An army I'll have to….." he stopped as Shang grabbed his collar and pulled him down to her and gave him a thank you kiss.

            "Nah, I'm not one for that Amazon crap.  Or feminism, I better just be happy with Cal.  Hmmmm, it kind of sounds like the setup my father has going with Tai and Quan.  You weren't trying to couple me with a watchdog were you?" She cocked an eyebrow at her husband, he was smiling.

            "So what is going on between your new general and General Zhou Tai?"

            "God Bei, after all I've put you through since our wedding night I thought you'd have it figured out by now."

-------------------------

            "The winds will blow! Zhuge Liang has called the winds!" A messenger reported as the winds began to pick up from the south.

            "He is powerful." Zhou Yu shook his head then looked up to Sun Jian.  "This man is someone we will have to watch closely."

            "But for now, we will basque in our victory."  Sun Jian smiled.  "No to mention our current alliance."

            "Sir." Zhou Yu nodded, the point was taken.

            "Ooohhhh, look at the fire pick up!  Isn't it gorgeous?" Lu Xun started to climb a guard tower for a better view.

            "You will be an interesting opponent Master Zhuge." Zhou Yu began his ride back to his position on the western boat.  "When the time comes."

--------------------------

            "The winds are blowing!" Huang Gai smiled.  "The attack is a success!"

            "Thank God." Cal sat on Ares and watched as the flames caught on the sails.  It was pretty she had to admit.  Then she saw something odd, very red and in flight.

            Red Hare landed on the causeway with a very loud bang.  The stud pranced around, happy to be around familiar people even if it was a jumpy Arab.  He snorted and played with the bit, boats sucked.

            "You are acting really odd today, you know that?" Cal asked Lu Bu.

            "I couldn't find Cao Cao." He looked away.

            "You got lost didn't you?" she laughed. 

            "No." he snapped and rode off to the west.

            "Cao Cao's withdrawing." Huang Gai observed.

            "I hope next time we can fight a normal battle.  This one had too many damned requirements; I can't kill lots of people when we have to make sure everything is happening just right.  This battle really sucked."

            "You want to head back to our lines?" he asked as he jumped back on his boat.  "Gan Ning's got the keg open already."

            "Nah, I think I'll make sure the eastern shore is clean, I'd hate to leave the beach messy."

-----------------

            "Cal!" Shang galloped up to her friend who had just finished off a gate captain.

            "Anyone left up here?" She looked behind her and saw nothing but sand and bodies.

            "Nope, did you get to have any fun?"

            "Yeah, but we got over here late.  Guess what!" Shang smiled. 

            "Probably something bad for me."

            "Hehe.  My dad thinks you're screwing Tai." She giggled

            "Does Ying know?" She was kind of amused by it, as an added bonus it would make things easier for the happy couple.

            "Nope, but she'll find out I'm sure."

            "Yeah, I guess I can go give my new 'boyfriend' some attention when we get back to camp." She broke out into a wide grin, finally something fun again.

            "Oh and Bei gave me a division!  And you're my second in command!" She couldn't wipe the smile off her face.  War was great especially when you got to take your friends along.

            "Talk about sexual favors!" Cal said loudly toward the Shu lord who was mingling with the men.  He pretended not to hear. "Did he tell you how horrible I am with paying attention to the welfare of soldiers?  My theory on bodyguards isn't really good:  I ride away from them and if they show up after the battle, well that's cool, if not." She shrugged, "more always show up the next battle so not much of a loss."

            "Oh I think you'll be getting educated on the finer points of Generalship, I hear Zhuge Liang wrote a book on it." Shang coughed.

            "Alright point taken, General. I will try my damnedest to improve."

            "That's more like it."


	19. The Bonfire at Red Cliffs

Chapter 19

The Bonfire at Red Cliffs

WARNING: A bit of torture. Surprise!  
Oh and before i forget- abbasabu I hope I've gotten away from the SW direction you were afraid I was taking. Or at least explained it, but then again this chapter probably won't help your distress. I'm kinda fuzzy on what was so SW with it, so elaborate and I'll try to fix it. Thanks again for the reviews.

"What do you mean everyone thinks your with Cal?" Ying asked full of jealousy

"I didn't start it, Sun Jian did. But this is good, right?" He said it as allies appeared in the form of Sun Shang Xiang and Cal.

"Hey baby." Cal winked at him.

"Oh, you told her." Tai sighed. He knew this would be bad and he didn't really know the Roman woman that well. Suddenly he realized that he was standing on the battlefield with three very bold and lustful women. What an odd way to celebrate victory, especially after he had been anti-social for so long. Then he caught the looks from the other men. "And everyone else."

"I had to! You couldn't have her walking into this scam, not knowing everything." Shang smiled. "Besides, she's my sub-general now so you better be nice to her or I'll kick your ass."

"You had better be nice to him, or I'll kick your ass." Ying poked at Cal's ribs as she dismounted.

"Why's everyone so hostile? I'm the one who hasn't gotten a proper welcome from my boyfriend." Cal smiled at Tai who looked like he was being tortured.

"Why do you suddenly hate me?" Tai lamented

"After all we've done? Oh honey I could never hate you, especially the way you do what you do." She blew him a kiss.

"Hey, I never told you…." Ying suddenly turned red realizing Cal was just being funny.

"So, where's my kiss lover boy? Or need we disappoint the crowd?" She walked up to him and stood on her toes to try and reach his lips.

"Oh, this is so much more then I bargained for." He bent down and kissed her only to hear Ying whimper.

"Go Tai!" Gan Ning was clapping.

"Is that really the best you can do?" Cal laughed and dropped back down to her heels. "Shit Ying, you'd be better off with Sun Quan."

"Fine, you want to play this game, let's do it right." Tai whipped her back into his arms and kissed her like his life depended on it.

"That's ok Ying; you can force him to make it up to you later." Shang patted her on the shoulder.

"But he's mine." She whined but then her voice got stern "And that's a really long kiss Tai. Going for some kind of a record?"

The two broke off their embrace and Cal muttered, "Damn."

"That's right, so next time you say something like that remember…. that." He heard another man whoop, it sounded like Sun Ce.

"Can I have him back now?" Ying growled.

"Hehe, man whore." Cal chuckled and poked him "Well just tell me at what times I need to disappear for the alibi, ok?"

"Don't you dare touch his ass, you hear me?" Ying would not have that sacred ground violated.

"You mean this ass?" Cal grabbed his right cheek as Ying slapped Ares on the rump to make him gallop past the two 'lovers'.

"This is going to be fun." Shang giggled.

Cal smiled, "You are right to be protective of that…very nice." She looked over to Shang. "Shall we? I think that shall be all for now. I doubt I can afford him for the full hour."

"Better be, or else there's going to be one hell of a catfight to explain." Shang laughed.

"Bye, stud." Cal called back loudly as she fetched her horse.

"Meet me by the seven stars alter tonight at nine, if your late god help me…" Ying balled her fist.

"Easy!" He smirked, "I love you remember?"

"Just don't forget that when you're kissing another woman." She walked off to join her friends and called back so the others could hear, "Thanks again for saving my husbands life! I owe you General!"

---------------------------

"Here's an angry mob if I've ever seen one." Cal laid down on the beach and put her head on Pang Tong's leg.

"How could you not tell us about him?" Zhao Yun asked with a disapproving look.

"Who?" Cal asked as Tong dropped his hat on her face.

Shang threw a crab at Yun, "Hey! I didn't say it was Ok for you to interrogate my general now did I?"

"_Your_ general?" Guan Yu asked.

"Oh Bei darling?"

Liu Bei looked over to the campfire as Zhuge Liang continued to brag about his amazing praying ability. "In a minute dear."

"You gave me a division right?"

Bei closed his eyes as he felt the entire Shu camp give him the same look. "Yes Shang."

"And Cal too right?"

"Uh Huh."

"See!" Shang threw a mollusk at Yun.

"Don't say a thing Zilong, she's really good." Cal waved her finger blindly, eyes covered by the straw hat.

"I know she is." Yun smiled, it seemed like both of them had grown up so much since Si Shui Gate.

"Hey, you know what?" Zhang Fei rose to his feet. "This deserves a toast! We got another general!"

"Yeah, booze!" Gan Ning came over from the other campfire. "I love booze."

"You reek of it too." Shang giggled. "Worthless pirate."

-----------------

(smack)

"What the hell was that for?" Tai held his cheek confused.

"That's for cheating on me!" Ying put her hands on her hips.

"I couldn't blow our cover!"

"You kissed another woman, and enjoyed it!" She pointed her finger in his face

"You're married to an asshole and I didn't enjoy it!"

"Tai, if you don't have my clothes off in two minutes I'm going to skewer you."

-------------------

"I suggest we go get ourselves some land." Pang Tong unraveled his map. "Pick some fights, chase off some squatters, piss a lot of people off. That kind of thing."

"That's ridiculous; we should attack Cao Cao while he is weak." Zhuge Liang sipped his tea.

"He isn't weak; we just sunk his boats and singed his goatee." Pang Tong played with his staff.

"So you want to relieve Liu Zhang of his duties? He is the current Shu leader, wouldn't that be treason?"

"He's inept and the Shu leader is right here, you idiot. The people follow Liu Bei and are mildly irritated by Liu Zhang. Toss his ass out, we've got a better man for the job."

"He is part of my family." Liu Bei added.

"Relative stranger." Pang Tong shrugged. "The annoying family that you never see except at funerals. Let's help him 'retire'. You can make him a basket, as a parting gift."

"Mats, straw mats." Liu Bei smiled; they all loved to point that out to him. Nothing like giving the boss a hard time.

"Acquiring territory is not the wisest decision at the moment; we should be looking for new officers."

"Let's look for new officers while we go get some land. How bout that for a compromise?"

"We will loose too many men and morale will drop on an expedition against our own side. We cannot afford either. The answer is no, we will not use your strategy."

"Isn't it his job to tell me no?" Tong waved at Liu Bei.

"I'll think on it." Liu Bei answered as Zhuge Liang growled.

----------------------------

"Huang Gai!" Shang ran up to her father's best friend. "I did it! I got my own command!"

"Well the mighty Sun warrior finally is unleashed." He smiled as the girl he used to carry around on his shoulders hugged him and then ran off to her father.

"Thank you daddy." She kissed his cheek.

"For what?" he looked over at Huang Gai confused.

"For my husband."

"Silly girl." He rested his head against hers and wanted to cry, she was gone now. Her love was all for Liu Bei and he was getting pushed aside.

---------------------------

"Lalalalalala" Gan Ning began to clear his throat for the lovely melody he had just made up.

"LA!" Zhang Fei followed suit, the spiky haired guy was a blast.

"Why am I afraid of what's about to happen?" Lu Meng leaned over and asked a semi-intoxicated Sun Ce.

"They sing good."( belch) Sun Ce raised his wine bottle in appreciation.

"Run." Zhou Yu whispered and got up to whisk his wife away.

"Ohhh, time to play with pretty Zhou Yu!" Da jumped up and followed her sister.

Then Gan Ning began to sing, "_I've got balls…_"

"_Me too!"_ Fei added in his scratchy bass

_ "Me three!" _Sun Ce hollered at the top of his lungs getting a look from his father.

"That's my boy." Sun Jian looked over at Huang Gai and closed his eyes.

"No Jian, that's the next emperor of Wu." Gai snickered.

"_I've got balls that are really big_!" Ning continued

"_But they look like a shriveled fig!"_ Ce added the next line

_"And your dick's skinny like a twig!"_ Fei belted it out, voice cracking, nowhere near in tune.

Ning was stumped, what else had the 'ig' sound. He took another drink and repeated, "_My balls are really big!"_

"Pride and joy." Jian sighed.

----------------------

Pang Tong walked by and stepped over Cal who had moved her head to Zhao Yun's thigh when he left. "I'm off to play with my girls!"

"Why don't I ever hear that from you?" She smiled up at Zhao Yun.

"You shot me down remember, it takes a long time for a guy to get over a heartbreak like that." He grinned.

"You need a woman Yun. Don't know why you're taking so long to pick one out, they're all over you." Cal closed her eyes as he flicked her in the head.

"I remember when a certain young lady had her eyes on him." Guan Yu stood up and smiled at Shang "But she went for a guy with more power."

"Yeah. Sorry I hope I didn't crush you as well Yun." She giggled.

"So much heartbreak for one man to endure." He sighed.

"Endure it in the arms of a busty woman." Cal slapped his cheek playfully.

"Well you ladies have a good time with him, I'm going to go check on our lord and make sure the 'sleeping dragon' isn't sleeping permanently."

"Ah, I left him breathing." Tong waved off the thought. "Breathing angrily, mind you. See ya later kids!"

--------------------

Cal began to walk off into the night, it was time to disappear for the sake of the crazy lovers. She knew Ying had wandered off earlier than she said, but she couldn't contain herself any longer. _That kiss didn't help._

"My lady, Master Zhuge requests your presence in Lord Liu Bei's tent." Sun Hao, Liang's favorite bodyguard, delivered the message.

"I can't believe this, the first fun night in a long time and…." Cal grunted as she walked into the tent. "Oh you. I thought I was finally rid of you."

"Likewise." Lu Bu returned the greeting. He was standing over a man with his sleeves rolled up. Obviously he had been beating on the poor bastard; the man was almost unrecognizable but still alive.

"The General found a spy while he was out checking our flanks." Zhuge Liang fanned himself, annoyed at the heat in the small tent.

"On you mean on those roads that lead _away _from Chi Bi?" Cal looked over at Lu Bu who smirked. She looked around at the others that sat at the table. Guan Yu was seated across from the prisoner who had been tied to a chair and currently had his back to the table. Lu Bu was in front of him, happy with blood covered knuckles. Then there was Liu Bei quiet and reclusive in the corner.

"This man was trying to deliver a message from Cao Cao, but we found nothing on him." Guan Yu explained.

"How do you know that?" She queried

"Because he told me to get out of the way since he had an urgent message from Cao Cao." Lu Bu smiled, "But that's before he realized who I was."

"How far did you get?" Cal was surprised, Red Hare was fast but he covered a lot of ground since the battle.

"Anyhow, we were hoping to find out what the message was. That would be why we called you." Zhuge Liang smiled wickedly. "I knew you would have a use eventually."

She closed her eyes, why was this happening again?

"You don't have to do shit." Guan Yu snapped. "And if I hear anyone suggest otherwise…" He began to stand up but Cal stopped him.

"No, he's right. I can help; it's probably the only thing I can really offer. Let me do what I do best." She sighed and walked over to the man.

"He's not going to talk if he hasn't already." Lu Bu wiped his hands off on a rag.

"There's the key to interrogations. If a man refuses to talk it is because he fears what his lord will do to him if he breaks, thus death it favorable." She put her boot on the chair and took out her slender knife, the one she never used for anything but skinning. Then she rattled off the rest of the lesson she had learned ages ago, "Ergo, you must make him beg for death and keep it from him as long as he refuses to cooperate."

Liu Bei rubbed his face with his hands. Letting Lu Bu beat the man to a pulp was bad enough, but allowing him to be tortured? And what about his responsibilities to Cal, hadn't she come to Shu to avoid this? He wanted to say something but couldn't, he was mesmerized by how well she did it. Slowly she lifted her leg up, almost in a high kick but without extending her lower leg. With an almost practiced ease she leaned her shin up against the man's throat and pushed him back against the table. He coughed up some blood and a few teeth that Lu Bu had graciously taken out for him, as his neck was bent over and the back of his head hit the table. Then she kept him pinned there and stuck her knife in the soft pine plank of the table. Liu Bei looked away, it was about to begin.

"This is your last chance you know. Tell them what they want to know and I'll let him kill you now."

"Uck you." He gurgled.

"Your choice. But mark my words; in ten minutes you will be begging Lu Bu to finish you." Her breathing instantly became shallower and before long she muttered, "Exitus acta probat." She brushed the man's hair out of his eye and began to focus until his face was all she cared about. Then she looked around the table for what instruments were available to her. "You interrupted dinner, for shame. No respect at all, you Wei dogs. I know, I used to be one of you." Then she reached out for the plate that contained the General Tso's chicken and plucked the little chili pepper out of it. Delicately she put it on her tongue and sucked the sauce off. Liang watched her closely and she flickered her tongue at him. "Shall we proceed?" she asked the strategist.

"Do."

"Mmmm, Lu Bu did quite a nice job on your face, didn't he?"

"I won't talk you fuckin bitch." He spat.

"Sure, that's what they all say." She forced open his right eye with her left hand and broke the pepper in half with her right index finger and thumb. Balling the garnish in her hand she hovered it over his now exposed eyeball and squeezed until her knuckles turned white. Instantly he began to screech and squirm under her, but she never flinched or even allowed him to displace her. "I bet that smarts, hmmmm?"

"Fuckin bitch…ahhhhh"

"Whatever." She let her leg fall away from his neck and slumped down until she was sitting on his lap. "Lu Bu, would you be so kind as to take over holding his head back for me, I'd hate for his tears to wisk away the pepper juice."

Lu Bu placed his massive hand on the man's forehead and shoved him back down against the table. The victim screamed again, pitifully, but his attention was on Cal. He couldn't believe how easy this was for her, and how incredibly well she did it. She would be an officer of incredible value…..

"Next." She took her skinning knife and looked at the man's forearm. "The thing I love most about this section of the arm is that there is so much movement in it. Do you realize the bones and muscles rotate over each other every time you move it? That's why it's my favorite place to start. So let's tie your elbow down like…this and begin." With precision cuts she made a slice down the length of his arm, it was quick enough to not get a reaction immediately. But a moment after she finished, he screamed some more.

"Ready to talk?" Lu Bu asked and noticed Zhuge Liang looking pale.

"Ahhhhhh, no!"

"Good." Cal cackled. The men in the room didn't even realize she could make that sound until that moment, but it didn't disturb her. She had things to take care of, there was a time limit. "Pass the salt, please."

Lu Bu grabbed the small bowl of salt, chunky salt. He held it out for her and felt aroused when he saw the look in her eye, the bloodlust had returned.

Cal took a handful in her left hand as she ran her fingers around the gash in the victim's arm. Gently she worked her way under the skin and found the muscles she was looking for. "Let him watch now." She smiled and paused the salt over the man's arm. "Last chance."

The Wei captain could barely see, but he could see well enough. He watched as she shrugged and opened her hand. The small pellets fell into his wound, causing instant pain. But he grit his teeth, it would be fine. The tears fell, and then the witch began to push it between his muscles, so that every time he tensed it ground into his interior flesh. He cracked, "Tong Gate, Cao Cao's moving to Tong Gate to crush Ma Chao."

"Why?" She punched him.

"Lord Ma's out for Cao Cao because his family was murdered for trying to betray our lord."

"What else?" She used her palm to grind the bleeding would

"That's it! He's attacking him that's all I know! I needed to tell Xiahou Yuan the army's coming to reinforce him."

"What divisions?" She took her skinning knife and drove it through his hand.

"Cao Ren and Hong and Xu Zhu are going with Cao Cao to meet with General Xiahou. That's all I know, please…..please."

"Who's there already?" She stood and leaned over him, "Tell me."

"I don't know……..end it please."

Cal ripped her knife out of the man's hand and cleaned it off. "He's yours." As she watched Lu Bu snap his neck she noticed Zhuge Liang had disappeared. Slowly she returned to her normal self. Liang was vomiting into a bucket and Guan Yu excused himself to go outside. Liu Bei couldn't even look at her, but Lu Bu had an odd look in his eye. One of admiration. She put her boot back on the chair to put her knife away and looked at the damage she had caused. No wonder everyone is sick, I'm a monster. Then she felt Lu Bu's hand on her thigh and she looked up at him. "Get off me." She stormed outside.

--------------------

"That was beneficial, was it not?" Zhuge Liang looked at Liu Bei as Guan Yu returned.

Yu punched the strategist in the face. "How dare you. How dare you put her up to this, you know how hard she's tries to leave this behind her! Damn you."

"And it was so hard for her to do it, wasn't it General." Liang felt the blood flowing from his nose. "You don't want to admit it was a lost cause to begin with."

"You do this to her again and I'll kill you." Yu turned and left, to look for the one he couldn't protect.

"Well the nerve." Liang turned to Liu Bei who was waiting with his fist. Liang dropped to the floor.

"Do not turn this empire into Wei. I will not tolerate you manipulating my officers to do something evil, something so wrong, just so that we could have the advantage." He shook his fist; it had been a long time since he had actually hit someone.

"What is wrong with you, can you not see how easy it was for her. Do you not see that she is as bad as Lu Bu?"

"Do you not see the desire to reform? She's come so far….but this one night may have ruined everything."

"My lord, she is but an expendable woman. Not even a native." Liang stood up.

"She is a Shu officer, a sworn officer. She is every bit as loyal to our country as you and I are, no matter her origin."

"Loyalty is not my concern, but her questionable talents are."

"Your questionable decisions are my current concern. I do believe I am going to be taking Pang Tong's advice and conquer the Shu lands before we continue on with our battles against Cao Cao."

"But sir…"

"Shut your pretentious mouth, I've heard more than enough from you tonight." With that Liu Bei stormed out of the tent leaving the sleeping dragon scorned.

-----------------

"Tai?"

"Yes darling?" He kissed her temple as they lay exhausted on the beach.

"Tell me we're going to figure this out."

"You're the strategist and the brains of this pair; you tell me we're going to make this work."

"I want to be with you." Ying wanted to cry.

"I sense a 'but'."

"However." She poked him but she smile quickly faded. "I can't leave my husband"

"I know you can't, I'll never ask you to."

"Then how can this work?" She rolled over on top of him and looked down into his mirthful eyes.

"A little faith please. I've been in impossible situations before and an answer has always presented itself. Just takes a little time."

"We're marching our separate ways tomorrow, Tai. What if…"

"What if you shut up and kiss me? Enough with the what if's, I've already run them through my head and I don't want to spend the last few hours with you talking about the possibility of never seeing you again. So are you going to kiss me or do I need to find my girlfriend?"

"I love when you order me around."

--------------------

"I finally found you." Guan Yu looked at Cal laying in the sand while her horse played like a foal in the waters of the river.

"You should have never asked me to join you." She looked up at the stars with tear filled eyes.

"You did as you were ordered. I thought you had a problem condemning people for following orders." He sat down on the beach and picked her up so that he could sling his arm around her.

"I made you sick Yu, how can you defend what I just did." She suddenly began to cry, "And I thought I was getting better."

"You're family kid; we're not going to turn our back on you."

"I'm crazy, I mutilate people."

"Every family needs at least one psycho." Yu grinned and smacked her in the face with his beard. "We've already got the drunk requirement covered by Fei."

At that moment Pang Tong came running down the beach, chased by half a dozen of his concubines. As he passed the two officers he turned sideways and flashed them before continuing his romp. His giggle could be heard echoing off the water as the concubines caught him and jumped his bones.

"And then there's Pang Tong who fills the role of that cousin that you don't speak about because he's in jail for indecent conduct." Yu laughed.

"Does he expose himself to everyone, or is it just something special for me?" Cal asked as she began to smile.

"I think it's just for you, although I'm sure Yue Ying wouldn't mind. I'm beginning to think Master Zhuge doesn't like women too much."

"Hmmmm. He does have a girly scream and wears flowy robes. You might have a case there. Ha! The 'sleeping dragon' is really the 'yet to be woken queen'."

"Oh by the way do you know Ying's screwing your boyfriend up by the seven stars alter?" Yu grinned.

"Yeah, those crazy kids."

"Don't let Bei find out, he's kind of conservative where the marriage vows are concerned."

"You're a really cool guy, you know that Yu?" She grinned.

"Well I'm a sucker for women." He smiled and squeezed her as Pang Tong streaked back down the beach.

------------------

"What's wrong?" Shang followed her husband into their tent.

"Damn Zhuge Liang."

"Whoa. Apparently a lot." She went to his side as he sat down at his field desk. She gently began to rub his shoulders, "What to tell me about it?"

"It's my fault, I could have stopped it."

"You're leaving out a massive portion of the story." She let his shoulder length hair down and began to brush it. He loved his hair, so soft and thin and his.

"We found a spy and we asked Cal to interrogate him for us."

"She did it too well huh?" Shang knew this would happen eventually, Cal told her Liang was going to call her on it. She knew the bastard hated her and wanted her to fail; it seemed like a good place to drive the wedge. Now it was up to the people she loved to stop her from panicking and leaving.

"Yes. But I'm afraid I've betrayed her. This was all meant to be left buried and now…." He rubbed his eyes.

"Someone go out to talk to her?" Shang pulled a bunch of his hair back into a ponytail and tied it. Unfortunately a few strands around his face were too short and fell out.

"Guan Yu went to find her." He slumped his shoulders.

"I'll talk to her in the morning; she's with the right person at the moment. Yu has a way with her." Shang turned his face toward her and smiled. Right now, she needed to be here for him and shoulder half the burden. It was wearing on him and she didn't like it. He needed a distraction. "Oh I like it."

"What did you do to me?" He grabbed a mirror.

"Oh Bei, I love it." She smiled and touched his face. "I know Cal very well; she needs her space and a guiding hand. She'll be fine. You're her lord and she'll never betray you. She'll fight with us till the end, I know it."

"When did you become so mature?"

"When I became a General. Gotta grow up sometime, right?"

"Shang, I am such a lucky man."

--------------------

"Where do you think you're going?" Cal asked ask she saw Lu Bu packing his saddlebags.

"Tong Gate."

"Why, who is this Ma Chao guy anyway?"

"Youngest son of Ma Teng, one hell of a fighter." Lu Bu answered with a grin. "Oh and by the way, love your work."

"Oh and by the way, I still fucking hate you."

"Such nasty words from someone who once told me that she could not hate me because she would have to hate herself."

"I'm really beginning to hate myself though." She watched him put his hand on her chin.

"I'm really beginning to like you, funny isn't it?"

"Good, because I'm going to Tong Gate with you." She whistled for Ares.

"Red Hare is faster than that nag of yours, why bother trying to keep up?" He threw his saddle bags over his shoulder as the little grey horse bounded up.

Cal scratched him and stuck her hand in Lu Bu's saddlebag to steal a treat meant for Hare. The Arab happily downed the molasses and oat nugget. "Come on boy, let's see what we did with our tack."

"So you're going to try and woo Ma Chao for Shu, huh?"

"And you're going to try and get that army you think you deserve, right?" She put the bridle over Ares's head and checked the bit.

"At least we have our agendas in order." He walked off to get a bit of breakfast before his journey.

"Where are you going?" Shang asked as she popped up behind Cal who threw the saddle on Ares.

"I'm going to saddle my horse, then make my case for accompanying Lu Bu to Tong Gate." She turned to her friend. "Shang, I can't let him go alone, he'll stab us in the back. And…"

"And?"

"And I did something horrible last night. Something I thought I left behind me. I have to figure out if I'm going to do more damage to Shu by being here…"

"Hey. I know. But it was for the right reasons…right?"

"Results validate the deeds." God how she hated that damned saying.

"You're still fighting for Liu Bei, right? You still want to." Shang was feeling wise now, if stupid Zhou Yu could see her now.

"I still need to figure out what the hell I'm trying to be before I can go on with this. There are just too many people that I care for that would get hurt if I turned out to be exactly what I was trained to be."

"So you'll hurt them by leaving, and not giving us a chance to help?"

"When did you grow up?" Cal looked at her and realized that sometime in the last two weeks she had become the empress Shu needed.

"Eh, Bei's rubbing off on me."

-------------------------

"What did you do to your hair?" Yue Ying looked over at Liu Bei who flushed with embarrassment.

"I did it last night, isn't it so much better?" Shang hugged her man.

"Awww, you're so cute with your little pony tail and pedophile mustache. And these sexy little strands of loose hair." Cal teased as she flicked his 'tassels'.

"You girls are terrible." Bei smiled though, he was enjoying the attention.

"He's supposed to be an emperor. Where's the mean and menacing?" Guan Yu laughed as his brother shot him an evil glare.

Cal pointed to Lu Bu, "He's got mean and menacing covered."

"So that leaves the adorable and just plain precious for you, sir." Ying grinned and then laughed.

"Incredible how he gets all the women now isn't it?" Zhao Yun observed.

"Apparently if you marry the right woman she let's her friends play with you as well." Fei laughed at the inappropriate humor.

"Nah, that's why you stay a bachelor." Pang Tong grinned.

"Shouldn't you be obsessing over someone else?" Liu Bei finally spoke up, to Cal. He found it useless to try and protest, his officers were always eager to tease him. He enjoyed it though, it was comforting. They all got along so well.

"Huh?"

"You know, your handsome pirate?" Ying smirked.

"Oh yeah, _my_ lusty pirate captain."

"Speaking of men, where's your husband at Ying?" Yu asked curiously knowing the man would have a black eye and Ying wouldn't have the slightest idea about it.

"Damn, no Kongming to wish us well on our journey. Boo-hoo." Cal grabbed Ares.

"Well kiddo, see if you can get Ma Chao back here for us, huh? Maybe when you get back we'll have someone else for you to torment." Tong kissed her on the lips.

"You crazy bastard." Cal laughed as she used his cloak to wipe her mouth off. "Well I don't know why you all want him here so much, he's probably some puny little kid with acne. You know a replica of Lu Xun, just wearing green."

"Excuse us, I need to give her orders." Shang grabbed Cal's arm and pulled her aside.

"Yes, general?" Cal said genuinely.

"Save Ma Chao and bring him home. If Lu Bu starts something put your boot up his ass and tell him to get lost."

"Ok, can do." Cal nodded. "Oh and Guan Yu knows about our little secret. He says to keep your hubby in the dark because he's a bit old-fashioned."

"Good to know." Shang looked at Lu Bu. "You think he'll leave?"

"I think we're going to play tug o' war with Lord Ma and split him in two."

"Hopefully he's not that fragile." Shang snickered.

"I wouldn't get my hopes up."

"Well General Lu, I guess you get her back on loan." Shang waved her Chakram at him. "On loan."

--------------------

"I'll race you to the pass." Cal winked at Lu Bu as he laughed.

"You have gone mad."

"Call it Shang." Cal made sure her heels were down and she readied herself.

"You're all about humiliation at my hands aren't you?" Lu Bu chuckled.

"Go!" Shang hollered.

Red Hare leapt up in the air and launched forward, easily taking the lead. Ares pinned his ears and gave chase, but he just wasn't fast enough to catch the blood bay. Then Cal swerved to the left and into the small gorge. The surefooted little desert horse easily picked his way down the sandy rock strewn slope and leapt into the shallow river. Cal looked up at the top of the road and noticed Lu Bu had figured out her ploy. The 'shortcut' would have been unmanageable for the stockier, less agile Chinese horses however the little Arabian was in his element and he knew it. As they cleared the river he began the steep climb up the other side of the gorge, popping up on the other side without much trouble. Red Hare was coming fast, but Ares was at full gallop now and the shortcut may have bought them enough time. Cal was over his neck, pushing for everything he had but it wasn't enough. Red Hare was up on them and beat them by a length to the pass. Lu Bu's laugh echoed eerily through the mountains.


	20. Ma Chao the Splendid

I feel kind of violated without the indentations.....then again my barbaric usage of commas and semicolons has probably condemned us all to this indentless fate.

I happen to have a thing for Ma Chao, so that would probably explain the length of this chapter. Ah well, he doesn't get enough fanfiction exposure.....and he's one that would be nice to expose more of......Ok on with the story.

Chapter 20

Ma Chao the Splendid

"Well this looks to be the right place" Lu Bu sighed. All this work so that he could try to make this man more loyal to him then Lui Bei. The work he had to do to form an army, an army he deserved.

"Excuse me, can you tell us where to find Lord Ma Chao?" Cal asked a young gate captain sweetly.

"Uhh, he's over near the center of the fort, ma'am." He hesitated seeing Lu Bu beside her. The captain was fully aware of who this man was. "But I can't let your proceed any further unannounced."

"Well announce us then, scum." Lu Bu looked over his companion and her small horse to glare at the man.

"Yes, General." He backed off and ran over to another man who in turn ran off towards the fort.

"You are so pleasant." She slid off her horse and stretched, it had been a long ride. Lu Bu was enjoying showing off his horsemanship and Hare's skill, leaving her to tolerate it. If she only had known, she would have never challenged him to race.

"If we go about it your way, Lui Chan would be an aging emperor by the time we got back."

She loosened the girth on her saddle to give Ares a chance to rest. "Looks like we're too late to warn anyone anyhow. This doesn't look like a camp caught off guard."

"Well, here he comes. Looks almost as young as you, that's never good."

"General Lu Bu, I am honored by your visit." Ma Chao instantly looked over at the odd little gray horse beside the mighty warrior.

"Lord Ma Chao, I have heard many good things about you. My condolences regarding your family. This.." Lu Bu looked down at Cal and gave her a shove with his foot. "This is Quinirus Calpurnia, my little Shu sub-general and her magic pony Ares."

"Lord Lui Bei sends….." She turned to look at the new man as Lu Bu's foot pushed her past his horse's head and into view. _Wow, he's gorgeous._

"Sends?" Ma Chao was puzzled by her.

"Uh….his regards and us….to you."

"Does she not speak fluently?" Chao asked Lu Bu who seemed amused.

"Oh she can speak just fine, trust me. We have come across information that you obviously already have. Cao Cao is advancing on your position as we speak."

"Yes, I know. Is that what you've come all this way to tell me?"

"No we're here to help." Cal found her tongue. "And force Wei out of your territory. Then we hope you will grace us with your presence on our way back home to join up with Lui Bei."

"Well one thing is for certain, I will beat Cao Cao. Whether I have your assistance is up to you entirely. I will not refuse such an accomplished general and his, um, companion."

"I'm not just his companion…..I mean…..I fight well, that's why I'm here." Cal wanted to kick herself. To make it all better, Red Hare whipped his nose on her breasts.

"I suppose that is up to Lu Bu not you." Ma Chao corrected her.

"Yes, that is right." Lu Bu nodded and laughed.

"Then get your cock-sure ass out of the saddle and make me. I didn't come all this way to listen to your irrational bullshit. In fact I don't answer to you anyhow; my loyalty lies with Lui Bei. And I don't remember hearing him tell me to bend over for you." She snapped and suddenly remembered where she was. Ma Chao gave her a stunned look.

"See I told you she can speak just fine."

---------------

"Oh that was good." Lu Bu laughed a good hard laugh. "No only did you leave a puddle of drool, but you told off your superior officer. Wow, you know how to impress a man."

"Can we seriously go back to the hostile relationship we had at Luo Yong? I'm so damned sick of your good natured humor. I don't like you happy, or really much at all."

"Hey, maybe you can flash him during the battle, or maybe" he laughed some more, "we can get together with Cao Cao and the two of us can tell him what you're like in bed." He slapped his knee. "You do fall for the most interesting people. First Lui Bei, now Ma Chao? How far out or your league can you get? Love at first sight, huh? But the best thing is, you only sleep with the bad guys!" He fell off his crate and rolled on the ground with unstoppable laughter.

"I never was in love with Liu Bei and I don't fall in love with anyone at first sight!" She kicked him in the thigh as Ma Chao approached, but she did not see him behind her. "You worthless bastard." She kicked him in the ass. "I should have taken the chance to cut your tongue out while you were tied up at Xia Pi!" She tried to kick him again but he swung his leg around and knocked her other leg out from under her. As usual Lu Bu had knocked her flat on her back. She looked up to see Ma Chao looking down at her offended.

"My Lady, I do not know where you come from but in my domain women do not act like Nanman thugs." Chao crossed his arms and looked down at her. "I have never heard such language out of anyone."

"You must not get out much." She smiled her apologetic smile.

Lu Bu sighed happily and sat up. "Maybe you should lock her up somewhere and make her miss the battle." He stood up and kicked some dirt on her pants. "Just don't rape her; she'd enjoy it too much."

"Maybe you should shut your….." She stopped when Ma Chao's faced turned red with anger. _Wow, he only gets better when he's mad._

"One more word from you young lady and I'm going to send you back to Lui Bei with _your_ tongue in a box." He stormed off.

"Well I can see the love blossoming now…." Lu Bu sat back down on the crate.

Cal sat up and watched Ma Chao leave in disgust. _How innocent and noble he is, and how very perfect_. She had never pursued a man before, but this one might be worth the hassle. _I'll win him over in battle. _

------------

The battle had begun some after their arrival and the furious Ma Chao was quick to charge out of Tong Gate. "Cao Cao! I will have vengeance for my father's death!" Ma Chao launched into an incredibly effective musou against Xiahou Yuan and within minutes the man ran off taking his troops with him.

"God, he's hot." Cal made her way over to Lu Bu and smiled dopily.

"Go away, I'm trying to enjoy myself." Lu Bu stuck his Sky Scorcher through a man's chest and lifted him off the ground before beating him with it.

"If he only weren't wearing that damned dragon print tunic. I bet he's got a fine ass probably not as nice as Zhou Tai's though.."

"Why are you telling me this?" He shook his head.

"You're the only one I know here." She shrugged and launched some private into the air for Lu Bu to swat into the gate wall.

"I will answer you with my spear!" Ma Chao screamed across the field and whipped himself around his spear with ease.

"I'd love to get a hold of his spear…" Cal said dreamily as she punctured a man's lung.

"Can't you find somewhere else to fight?"

-------------

"Pathetic. Is this the extent of Wei's power?" Ma Dai asked his cousin.

"Doubtful. Cao Cao is a crafty one." Ma Chao took his helmet off and scratched his head, then looked to Lu Bu and Han Sui. "Any ideas? You have had more contact with him than I."

"Ohhh humble too," Cal whispered in Lu Bu's ear. "Mmmmm and delicious without the helmet."

"Maybe we should ask Cal since she's been fucked by him. What kind of maneuvers did he pull when you were protesting?" Lu Bu shot his companion a triumphant look.

"Bitch." She sneered then looked up at her new found love who was appalled. He quickly put his helmet back on as if he felt she would contaminate him if he was unprotected.

"You have been in his service?" Han Sui seemed to find this relevant.

"For two years. Look if you really want to know, I'll go ask." She couldn't take Lu Bu's smug smile anymore; even Cao Cao's presence would be more appreciated. She turned to Ares and mounted up. "I'll be back, eventually." She turned and rode through the gate and to the northern bridge.

"Maybe she's going to defect." Ma Chao said concerned.

"If that were the case, I wouldn't have to hear about the virtuous Lui Bei all the way from Chi Bi." Lu Bu rolled his eyes. He began to speak ten octaves higher to imitate a woman's pitch. "Lui Bei's so honorable, so virtuous. He's going to restore the Han and helped the people. Oh Lui Bei, wah wah wah. Only we get here and it's Ma Chao's ass and his spear and Ma Chao's hot and blah blah blah. She's about as horny as those damned Qiao sisters."

Ma Chao turned a little red but cleared his throat and smiled, "Let's regroup and wait for Wei's counterattack. Han Sui guard the river ford, I suspect Cao Cao will test us there."

-----------------

"What the hell is this?" Cal reined Ares in and looked at the fortress on the other side of the bridge.

"I call it my Ice Fortress." Cao Ren rode up next to her and admired his stronghold. "Cool isn't it?"

"Ren, you can't just go building shit on other people's land. It's not very polite." Cal watched his face glow.

"What did I tell you about your language?" He turned to her and shook her chin. "Bad girl. It's only gotten worse since you started hanging around those damned peasants."

"Peasants? Hell, I blame it entirely on Guan Yu and Zhang Fei; those boys are always loud enough to drown out any reprimands from Lui Bei. Besides Shu is just so much more relaxed, I can be myself around them. We even tease Liu Bei! I said something about Cao Cao's hat once and ended up hanging upside down in a vat of rice. That stuff gets stuck in your nose."

"Glad you're happy kid." Ren patted her leg. "So what the hell are you doing here?"

"Well initially we were here to tell Ma Chao about your invasion, but they already knew about it. So, since we were here we figured it might not be so bad to wail away on you all again. Besides, have you seen Ma Chao? Good lord is that man hot. "

Ren turned around and looked back at Tong Gate. "Well they call him Ma Chao the splendid, I just thought it was for his fighting abilities not his body."

"Oh god Ren, there aren't any words to describe how delectable he is." She smiled and put her finger between her teeth. "Mmmm….Ok. I've been away too long. I need to go back and drool some more. So let's get on with this."

"So shall I proceed to beating you away from my fort?"

"You can try, but I've been practicing." She smiled.

"And you got a little shield now, it really makes the outfit." He clinked his own shield against hers. "Still a bit small."

"I like it. And look, I got bracers too!" She smiled happy to finally brag about her new toys then looked back at the fortress.

"It's really cool though, isn't it? I just put it here without anyone knowing. He he."

"Ren, let's get on with this, I need to hunt down Cao and ask his what his plans are. Then I can return to my beautiful man back at Tong Gate and try to win him with my prowess."

"Hell kid, just let your reputation do the work if you want his body that bad."

"Hey! I'm trying to go legitimate here."

-----------------

"Hello my friend." Cao Cao walked Shadowless through the shallow waters of the river and stopped halfway.

"Cao Cao, why have you come? We are enemies now!" Han Sui reluctantly urged his horse into the river.

"You wound me Han Sui. We are old friends you and I. Must the chaos come between us too?" He smiled and waited for the man to respond.

"Well….."

"Come, join us. Why are you allowing yourself to be ordered around by Ma Teng's child? You are one of the greatest generals I have known." Cao Cao watched his words hit home and Han Sui looked away.

"I was Ma Teng's sworn brother, you know that. I cannot let his murder go unavenged."

"He tried to murder me, do you fault me for protecting myself?"

"No but….."

"Then let us quickly teach this boy a lesson he will not forget. War is for men who are not still attached to their mother's teat."

"Cao Cao I am sorry, but no. Ma Chao may be young but….he is capable. You have seen how easily he had defended the gate. I will remain by his side, as I would if his father were still alive." Han Sui turned back to his side of the river.

"Well when you grow tired of babysitting, you know where to find me."

-------------------

Ma Chao turned red with fury as he watched the encounter with his mare, Lotus. "Han Sui has betrayed us."

Lotus nickered softly and touched his hand with her nose. She hated seeing him unhappy and it seemed like he was always unhappy nowadays. She could only comfort him when he needed her neck to cry on or someone to talk to.

"Let's go have a little talk with General Han."

--------------------

Cal raced through the Ice fortress gate with a smile on her face. She let Ares run; he would plow through the endless hoards of blue soldiers sending them flying everywhere. Six months ago beating Cao Ren would have been a ridiculous notion, but now he was heading for the nearest gate-fast. It made her feel better, like she actually had a chance at Ma Chao. Now if she could only figure out this Generaling shit. What was it that Liu Bei was always trying to drum into her brain? "Look upon your soldiers as beloved children, and they willingly die with you." _Probably something from Sun Tzu. That's all they ever quote around here. Boy do I wish I would have grabbed a copy of Caesar's war commentaries before I left_. Her thoughts were interrupted by a massive man throwing her out of the saddle with a big mace. _Ouch._

-------------------

Lu Bu was happy, no elated. He had found Dian Wei, 'the coming evil' and was enjoying the competition. The man was angry, like a rabid dog, and had a full set of bodyguards. Had being the key term. The bodyguards were underfoot now and becoming a nuisance, a bloody sticky nuisance. But he was having a good time, nonetheless. Then the bastard started to talk.

"Evil comes!" Dian Wei hacked at him furiously.

"Keep barking, pup." Lu Bu busted him in the face with the shaft of his halberd.

"Fucker…."

"How old are you boy?" Lu Bu's curiosity got the better of him.

"Nineteen."

"Holy shit, what are they feeding you?"

-------------------

"Fight, fight, fight me!" Xu Zhu chanted.

"Oh you again. This is really getting old." Cal sat up and rubbed her abdomen, which took the brunt of the attack. "Then again I haven't fought you yet have I?"

"So you want to play?" He asked as swirled his mace over his head.

"Sure fat boy." Cal stretched her shoulders and readied her shield.

"I'm not fat, I'm big boned." Xu Zhu charged. "WAAAAA!"

Cal watched him come at her like an elephant. She dropped to her knees and rolled between his legs, popping up on the other side and slashing his back open with a sweep of her rapier.

"That's mean!"

"You don't mind the name calling, but you're offended by the attack?" She waited, shield ready.

Xu Zhu felt his back. "That really hurts."

"I really don't have time to waste, can we get on with this?" She glanced around and noticed that this was not the main force. This was a rear guard, placed here to make everyone think Cao Cao was hiding behind his fortress. That meant the bastard was lurking about somewhere. Had he found a way across the river? If so who, was guarding that ford?

"Ok! I'm ready!" he frowned as he tried to swing his mace without hurting his back.

"You are really slow aren't you?" Cal began to circle him, trying to pick out the best place to poke him full of little tiny holes. Then he was distracted by his own bodyguards coming to help him and she attacked.

Xu Zhu felt the rapier hits and thought little of them until the tiny girl backed off. Then the puncture wounds began to throb. "Oh Cao Cao's gonna be mad." He turned to run to the gate.

"Wow, that was easy." She looked for Ares.

"We won't be." Xu Zhu's bodyguards circled her.

"Ah but I now have learned a sixth hit and boy is it effective." She winked at the head bodyguard. "A little closer sweetheart, then I'll show you the gates of hell."

"You'll be showing my boys a lot more then that, bitch."

-------------------

Dian Wei laughed mockingly as Cao Hong joined in the battle against Lu Bu. Lu Bu growled, he had enough of this upstart's attitude. It was time to knock him down and listen to him whimper his way back to Cao Cao's feet. With a couple of swings of Sky Scorcher, both men were off balance and Lu Bu launched into a musou. He rarely ever used it, enjoying the combo hits more, but this kid was annoying. After he finished beating on the bald boy, he tossed him in the air and whipped on him some more. "You dare laugh at the mighty Lu Bu?"

Cao Hong tried to attack the warrior from behind but he only got kicked in the face and a broken nose for his efforts. Worried that Lu Bu might try and include him in the fifty five hit combo he currently had going on Dian Wei, he crawled away and retreated.

-----------------

Ares hit his best stride and blew through the rest of the small town and towards the river. The maps showed that there was not bridge here, but it looked like one had magically appeared. Cal Shrugged and guided him towards it, who was she to argue with fact. A bridge with wheels was still a bridge, therefore she did not have to swim across the river. _So that's where Cao Cao's gone! I have to alert Ma Chao…_

"My name is Xu Huang, do not forget it!" The Wei officer stood on the other side of the bridge.

"I know who you are, idiot." She brought Ares to a halt.

"I can't let you cross, Lady Quinirius." He swung his axe.

"Well you Wei boys are really tearing up the countryside, aren't you? Building fortresses, laying bridges, getting in my way."

"Accept my challenge."

"No." Cal shook her head. "I don't have time for this!"

"Then you shouldn't have cut through the rear guard of our army." Huang replied.

"Well I'd rather trample your people then mine, personal preference." She looked around, there had to be another way. Battling Xu Huang would take all day, even Yue Ying had her hands full with him. She had to convey the news to Ma Chao before his flank was turned.

"I'll show you my strength, accept my challenge!" he repeated, frustrated with the woman.

"No, don't you listen? I need to get back to my own lines."

"You'll have to move me then." He readied himself to knock her off her horse.

"Fine, I'll just find another way." She pulled Ares around and aimed for the side of the bridge. "Looks like we're going for a swim." She kicked him and he jumped over the side and into the river.

"I'll just have to accept your challenge downriver then." He turned to his sleeping dapple gray gelding, Scout. "Time to wake up old friend, we're going fishing."

------------------

"Han Sui, are you having problems distinguishing sides?" Ma Chao walked Lotus up to his father's old friend.

Ma Dai looked over at Chao confused, "Cousin, what are you talking about?"

"Ask him." Chao slid off his horse.

"Come on son, you know better than that." Han Sui couldn't help but take a step back as the young man bore down on him. The boy had grown up a lot in the last few years and towered over him standing at 6' 1". Then again he wasn't a little boy anymore, he was a young lord with a lot on his shoulders.

"Then tell me what you were discussing with Cao Cao in the middle of the river." Chao spat.

"What?!?" Dai looked over at Han Sui.

"The fight does not go well and you are suspicious of me? This is exactly what Cao Cao would want!"

"And you'd be the one to know, wouldn't you traitor! You are getting ready to defect!" Chao took his spear and swiped at Han Sui.

"Please my lord, no!" He raised his arm in defense, only to loose his hand.

Cal popped out of the river, still on Ares back as Chao's spear fell. Seeing him fight made her heart flutter. _What the hell is wrong with me?_ She let a smile cross her face and heard hoof beats. Xu Huang had followed her, and behind him was the entire Wei army. "Oh shit." He raised her shield as he swung his axe at her.

"Eat this!" Huang hollered

"How convenient that they attack us here!" Chao screamed and charged at the evading Han Sui.

"Where the hell is Lu Bu?" Ma Dai hollered.

"On the other side of the fucking gate, where do you think?" Cal screamed back, this was bad. Then she saw Cao Cao and the instant of shock allowed Xu Huang to dehorse her.

"Chao please!" Han Sui plead, "You are falling for his ruse!"

"Men protect the ford!" Dai galloped back and forth trying to rally the men who were thrown into confusion by Ma Chao's attack on their general.

Cal landed behind Han Sui and ducked as Ma Chao swung at him as he tripped over her. "Lord Ma, we have bigger problems."

"Stay out of this!" Chao screamed as he jumped over her.

"We're going to be overrun if you don't get your shit together and attack the right person!" She stood up and watched Huang march through the running waters of the river and towards her. "Ares! Vocat (L. summon) Red Hare. VA!" She watched the Arab tear off towards the gate, the long way-back the way they had just come. Oh well, he was moving fast and once he found the red stallion, Lu Bu would hopefully figure it all out. That was a really big 'if'. Lu Bu could be quite dense when it came to the obvious.

"Am I too much for you to handle, little girl?" Huang made an overhand chop at her.

She launched a kick at his head and nailed him in the jawbone. The she swept her shield across his face with the momentum. "Does it look like I can't handle you?"

"Someone's getting a bit testy, is it because my lord is nearby and you're afraid?" He spit out a tooth and swung his pole axe in an arc flinging reinforcements everywhere, and one poor captain flew into Cal's rapier. Huang saw the opportunity to attack as she tried to dislodge her weapon from the squirming screaming man. He grabbed the captain, lifting Cal off the ground as well. As the Celestial Blade slipped out of the man he one armed a swing with his axe and caught her in the stomach with square portion of the side of his blade. The girl flew across the field and into Ma Chao.

"Feel my wrath!" Chao raised his spear and was ready to puncture his betrayer but got slammed in the back with a flying 120 lb woman. Both warriors hit the ground with a clank of armor and weapons.

Han Sui jumped up, bleeding stump and all, and ran off towards the Wei troops. He had no choice but to join Cao Cao now.

Cao Cao laughed as he watched Cal fly across the battlefield. In one easy move he would have both Ma Teng's brat and Dun's whore in his hands. This would definitely make up for the defeat at ChiBi, and it would be extremely enjoyable to personally see to their executions. Well, eventually. He smiled wickedly.

Cal shuffled uncomfortably. She was still soaking wet from her trip down the river, but now she was covered in dirt and some heavily armored idiot who was on top of her. "Get off me!" She tried to shove the man off of her before Huang could get the opportunity to cut her in half where she lay.

"You fool." Chao pushed himself off of her. "You let him escape!"

"Me?" She saw Huang coming. "Get down." She wrapped her empty sword hand around his head and pulled him down, holding her shield over them both as Huang's Marauder slammed into them.

Chao heard the ringing in his ears from being directly under the shield when the weapon hit. A bit dazed he tried to shake his head only to realize her hand had forced his head into her cleavage. He rolled out away from her and jabbed at Huang with his spear, nailing the man in the ribcage. "If you can't handle him…."

"I was doing just fine without your help." She winced as she lowered her shield. She took the brunt of the attack on her wrist, a weak spot to begin with. Rolling over on her knees she looked for her weapon. A flash of light from the setting sun hinted its location was under a corporal's body. She reached for it only to watch the man's body be crushed by a horse, Shadowless.

"So we meet again Cal." Cao Cao smiled as she turned her head to look at him, still kneeling on all fours. "I think that's a good position for you, don't you think?"

Ma Chao used a forward thrust and then slammed his spear down on Huang's head. The man ducked but not before Chao's spear took the tip of his ear off. Chao spun his spear back around and planted it into the ground so he could use his flying kick. As he spun around 360 degrees he noticed that Cao Cao was about ready to attack that stupid woman Liu Bei sent.

Cal saw the evil glint in his eye and the Wrath of Heaven coming down to slice her open. Before the sword reached her she rolled underneath Shadowless and grabbed a pike off a downed bodyguard. Up off the ground in an instant she held the giant stick with both her hands, quickly remembering why she hated polearms. She never used them, and she might as well have been standing there with a fork. She needed to get her weapon back, but even then she wouldn't have a chance in hell against Cao Cao. He was too good. She backed up knowing the evil Wei bastard loved to be dramatic. He would follow her at a walk, smirking and talking shit. If she could get him inside the barricade, it wouldn't be that difficult to jump the fence and get her rapier back. _Hey, so there is a use for Zhuge Liang's retreat and lure tactic!_ She smiled, "Then come and get me."

"I intend to." He played with his sword, showing off. "It almost sounds like you want me to capture you. Do you miss me?"

"Oh honey, I've moved on to someone with a decent sized dick, one I can actually find without feeling for it." She threw the pike and watched as he deflected the weapon like a fly. Quickly she jumped up on a crate and leapt over the stockade fence as he swung furiously at her. Sprinting across the field she saw the body of the man she needed to rummage under….then she saw Cao Cao's lead guard pick up her weapon and laugh.

"Looking for th…." He saw her throw a punch midair and then fell backwards. Then there was a poke near his heart and he began to cough up blood. She was fast, wasn't she?

Cal lifted her rapier up, ready for Cao Cao's charge. No matter what, she couldn't let him capture her again. This would have to be a fight to the death, hers.

Chao pole vaulted himself into Cao Cao's chest and was amazed when the man stayed in the saddle. Effortlessly he landed on the other side, ready to exchange blows with the man that was responsible for the murder of his entire family. "I am the sword of justice, and justice will prevail." He attacked, and in a flurry of moves Cao Cao had to give ground.

Cao saw Lu Bu coming before anyone else did, he had the advantage of still being on horseback. While he still had the chance he kicked Shadowless and spun away to the river. "Pull back!"

"Come back here you coward!" Chao raced after him on foot.

Lu Bu galloped up and looked at the scene of carnage around him. Then he turned to see the Wei forces retreating with a furious Ma Chao in pursuit. "Looks like I missed everything."

"Yeah." Cal sheathed her rapier. The battle was over, Ma Chao stood in the middle of the river and kicked at the water as Shadowless and his rider disappeared over the hill. Ares trotted up and snorted, nostrils flaring. He had done his job.

----------------

"So are you still dreaming about Lord of Etiquette, Ma Chao?"

"You'll never win him over to you Lu Bu. He's never going to serve under someone without integrity." She snarled and watched the gorgeous man approach. She was very thankful she had a chance to jump in the river and wash off before he made his way back to them. After Cao Cao disappeared the young lord had gone back to regroup his men and tally casualties with his cousin Dai. He promised the Shu warriors he would come back and speak with them after his task was completed, and here he was in all his glory.

"Or date someone without morals." Lu Bu leaned back against the rock she was sitting on.

"I wanted to thank you again for your assistance." Chao smiled.

Cal melted and rested her elbow on Lu Bu's head so that she could dreamily stare at him. "You're welcome." She purred.

Lu Bu shifted away from her and watched her fall off the rock onto her face. "I have to say I'm sorry we let Cao Cao get away. We should go after him."

Cal snapped out of her daydream when she heard the pleasant sound of Lu Bu's voice. He was never pleasant unless he was being phony. "We?"

"Yeah. Me, you and him." He looked back at Tong Gate and thoughtfully shrugged, "and the leftovers of his army."

Ma Chao sat down on a rock to watch them. He was incredibly suspicious of both of these two despite their claims to be sent by Liu Bei. But now they appeared to be turning on each other, how interesting. Maybe this was just how they were, after all they did seem to argue a lot.

"What is that some kind of formula for you? You, a chick and a guy with a spear make an army?" Cal stood up and dusted herself off.

"You don't have to come, go back to Liu Bei." Lu Bu looked over at Ma Chao, "What do you think?"

"I was thinking about joining Liu Zhang, since he is still the official leader of Shu." He watched them both roll their eyes. They were very alike, yet they didn't agree on anything. It was amusing to watch, he had to admit.

"Don't you want revenge?" Lu Bu queried.

"Well, of course." Chao said with righteous indignation

"Then come and join Liu Bei, attack Cao Cao with an army not a worn-out regiment." Cal watched his face, he wasn't convinced of anything.

"Yeah, and wait for old age to take his life not your spear. Liu Bei will take forever to bring this war to Xu Chang. You know that, he's trying to occupy his own territory and establish himself as we speak. He is not strong enough to take on Wei alone and Wu has already returned home to contend with the threat by themselves." Lu Bu played with the ornamental feathers on Sky Scorcher.

"So what's your plan, oh mighty Lu Bu? If I may ask?" Cal crossed her arms, _this would be good_.

"Well, we've got three officers right here. Even though you two are young, you've both got skills. We'll recruit as we go."

"From where? Everyone between here and the capital has been pressed into service by the Wei army." She shook her head, "You have no idea do you?"

"You just don't have the desire to kill him that we do." Lu Bu retorted

"How dare you say that?" She growled. "Why do you want to kill him, because he captured you? Because he had you on your knees ready to go to hell?"

"One of these days, it will be you awaiting your executioner. Then you will look at him the way I see him." Lu Bu waited, she was getting fired up. _Good._

"Oh embarrassment, that's a worthy excuse. Ma Chao looks to avenge his family and you dare to say that your reason is better?" She looked over at the breathtaking man, he looked back at her with skepticism.

"I didn't say it was better, I just said you obviously don't hate him as much as we do." Lu Bu waited, the flood gates were open.

"Really, well let me tell you something, General. I may not have suffered a public humiliation at his hands like you, but mine was far worse in the privacy of his fucking bedchamber! At least you didn't have to live with him violating you for two years." She shook involuntarily. Seeing him and talking about him in the same day made her edgy. For the first time she realized that she was afraid of the man. She suddenly wanted to go home, to the Shu army, bury her head in Zhao Yun's shoulder and feel safe. He would understand what was bothering her, he always got it and he never lectured like Guan Yu was prone to doing. She loved Yu, he was like the father she never had but Yun, he was her age and they could talk more in depth. She needed him now, but he was so far away. All she had was Lu Bu, and that was a shitty feeling.

"What did he really do to you? You said at Xia Pi that I didn't treat you like shit. I never really got that, I drug you to bed by your hair."

She turned away from him and saw Ma Chao sitting on his rock, his dusty handsome head resting against his spear. "You didn't bring your anger to bed with you, it was different. As much as I hate to say it, you're actually really nice to screw. But him…..he uses it against you. He loved to be in control and he needs to feel like he is. Everything was "tell me how this feels" or "tell me what you deserve" ughh. The first year, it was really fine. He was just a side note to the day, nothing I even cared to take note of. Then I got used to everyone, my Chinese got better and I got relaxed enough to be myself."

"Ohhhh." Lu Bu knew what would come next.

She turned back to him not wanting Ma Chao to see her. "Yes, the prime minister likes to have everything to be in order and he rules with an iron fist. He doesn't tolerate anyone who strays outside the lines of what he deems proper. As you can guess, I wandered a long ways away from what he thought I should be. So he figured he needed to correct it. And that he did, every time."

"Well you do get out of line…" Lu Bu admitted

"Really? Then didn't that merit a proper military punishment? Yes? Well not to him. He made sure I understood who was in command and that I needed to keep him happy. And that discussion always came in the quiet serene comforts of his room or his study."

"Then why did you stay? Or why is he even alive now?" Lu Bu was intrigued.

"Where was I going to go? I had just run away from Rome and I didn't know anyone outside of Wei. Dun was my only friend and he was taking care of me and Cao Cao was keeping me employed. Besides it was evident that he was a very powerful man, if I did leave then I would more then likely end up somewhere where he could retrieve me. It was only after the Han began to break down and everyone realized how ambitious he was that I had a chance. And I took it."

"But you could have killed him; I've seen what you're capable of." Lu Bu knew how she worked and if she was that close….

"I tried once, something I can honestly say was due to my age and lack of experience. Ah precious memories…I believe he was telling me to put his dick in my mouth and I offered to cut it off so he could suck on it himself. So that got a bitch smack across the room. Unfortunately I landed right next to his sword belt." She shook her head, "And I have such a well contained temper."

Ma Chao was shocked. He had no idea anything of this nature was going on, anywhere. He felt so naïve. Of course he knew what acts women could perform for a man and vice versa, but there was a whole new side to it all. It was just downright evil, something he knew Cao Cao was capable of. He felt bad for her, outraged that anyone could do this to a woman even if she was foreign. He watched her begin to pace and began to feel worse because he couldn't pry his attention away from the story she was telling.

"So you pulled his sword out." Lu Bu said.

"Yeah, the Sword of Trust, ironically. The one ZhaoYun found at Chang Ban. And I tried to attack him. It went really well, I gave him a nick on the chest and he punched me in the face before slamming me into the wall. Yeah, he was kinda pissed. I figured it would be over at that point, but no such luck. To make it all better he called in Dun."

"What?" Lu Bu was even surprised by this twist.

"Yeah, nice mental picture huh. Me naked up against a wall, pinned by the throat and wrist. Cao Cao naked, frothing at the mouth and glaring with those devil eyes. Then enter stage right, my only friend and benefactor. He just stood there; Kirin Fang raised and went pale. So big bad boss man says," Cal stood up straight and lowered her voice, "Well cousin your whore just tried to kill me. The choice is yours: do I kill her or give her the punishment she deserves." Well, surprise, he picked the crazy Wei flogging. So my best buddy gets to tie up my hands by the wrists and string me up on Cao Cao's bed canopy. Then he left the room, me and the castle so he wouldn't have to listen as his bastard cousin whipped the life out of me. Good times, huh? I want Cao Cao to die, but if it's by my hand it will be too quick. I want him to die slowly and painfully and that will have to be in combat. I'll never be good enough to fight him and win."

"So you need someone else to kill him for you?" Ma Chao asked, chivalrously. "I will tell him as he dies that he must atone for the wrongs against you as well."

"I don't need your help or pity." She growled suddenly offended by his help.

"Spoken like a pair of youths." Lu Bu rolled his eyes.

"I'm twenty-one." Ma Chao snapped, obviously the subject had come up before.

"And I'm twenty." Cal said, "So obviously you don't have a problem with anyone in that age range."

"I never said you where of acceptable maturity either. Even though you've done enough already for five lifetimes." Lu Bu stood up. "Now that story time's done, what will it be? March to Liu Bei, Liu Zhang or Cao Cao?"

"Let me talk with my cousin before I make a decision." Chao stood and looked over the two officers before him. Odd pair, but they seemed to work well together. If he did go after Cao Cao they would be the people he would want with him, and Lu Bu was an unrivaled match on the battlefield. But he was lord of his father's lands now and there was a need to do what was right for the people of Liangzhou Province. If he sided with Liu Zhang then he would surely battle Liu Bei in the process and lose, but if he went with the girl's pleas and sided with Liu Bei then he would oust Liu Zhang. Then there was the prospect of helping Lu Bu raise an army of his own, the most unfavorable option. Hopefully Ma Dai would be able to help.

-------------------

"What you say is true cousin; you are being pulled in three directions." Ma Dai looked over at Chao and sipped his tea, "I don't envy you."

Chao was wandering around his father's study; it was well into the early hours of the next day. It was still sweltering hot and he had taken off his shirt and boots. He couldn't help but think of his father and brothers; they would know what to do. He wasn't nearly as involved as they all were. Why would he be? He was the third and youngest son, he figured on nothing but a military career. Now it had all changed. "I need to do what is best for the province, not for me."

"If this girl is right, then Liu Bei truly does want you to join him. You can use that to your advantage."

As Dai mentioned it he thought about the odd girl. As much as a nuisance as she ended up being, she did her part in helping to turn the tides of battle. She was genuine, why else would she bicker with the mighty Lu Bu? Then there was Lu Bu who also wanted him to join with him. It was an honor to be thought of that highly by such a great warrior, but he couldn't help but wonder why. Was he ready to betray another lord? And if so was the girl going to go with him? Did Liu Bei know he had two officers on the loose working on their own account? He looked over as he heard a knock on the door. "Come in."

"Lord Ma….wow." Cal stopped in her tracks as she gawked at him wearing nothing but his pants. "Sorry, but…uh…yeah. Oh I wanted to make a better case for Liu Bei then I did yesterday."

"How did you know we were still up?" Ma Dai asked.

"Because I'm not blind. The light in this room is bright enough to put the Alexandria lighthouse to shame." She closed the door behind her.

"Go on." Ma Chao watched her check him out and he couldn't help but think of everything Lu Bu had said about her. How weird these people of Rome were.

"Anything I tell you about my lord is not going to win you over until you meet him. He is honest and righteous, the same qualities I see in you."

"Oh so that's what you were looking at." Ma Dai snickered and looked back at his map.

"How do you know that? You do not know me." Chao asked.

"I can see it. I know you don't trust me, you're not a fool. I'm actually glad you don't because it also means that you're not going to trust Lu Bu either. But you also know that Liu Zhang will fall. He is an inept leader and Shu needs a strong hand to lead it or it will be absorbed by Wei. Liu Bei is the man who can do that." Cal waited for something; the two men were too quiet.

"Yes, I know." Ma Chao closed his eyes and turned back to the window. "I know."

"I'm sorry to bother you, I should go." She smiled and reached for the door.

"What are your orders, exactly?" Chao spoke up.

"To tell you of Cao Cao's invasion, try to persuade you to join Shu and make sure Lu Bu doesn't do any damage when he leaves."

"So Liu Bei sends me a man who he thinks will defect?" Chao asked.

"God, Chao, what is it with you and defecting?" Dai shook his head.

"Han Sui betrayed us, and his sworn oath to my father. I am suspicious of everyone now." Chao turned back to the two people watching him curiously.

"No, he will leave on his own: wandering off like lost sheep. We have taken advantage of him while he was willing to be, shall I say, tolerant of us. But he's discontent, and it's evident."

"You saved him did you not?" Chao was very intrigued.

"Yes, but only because I was judged the same way he was and hunted. I do not claim that we were not guilty, but it was under the order of another that we did our crimes. I have very little as far as a conscience goes, but it was repulsed by the idea of someone else having to live through what I did. But the fact remains that the two of us are rather unsavory individuals. Perhaps the three kingdoms would have been better without us around." She looked at the floor and thought about it.

"Tell me about Shu." Chao sat down on the small bench by the window, interrupting her musings.

Cal turned back to him and realized he was sitting with his legs spread and hunched forward. It showed off every muscle nicely. She gathered her focus and leaned against the table. "Well you've heard about Liu Bei but he just got married not too long ago to Sun Jian's daughter, Sun Shang Xiang. She's a very violent tomboy, but she's a good fighter and I know she's a good general and a great friend. I was actually reassigned to be her sub-general after Chi Bi but we ran into Cao Cao's spy and well, I got a special mission. Then there's Zhao Yun, another good guy dependable and as brave as the come, he's like a brother to me. A real sweetheart. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei I doubt I have to describe to you, they're famous in their own right."

"Who else?"

"Our strategist is Zhuge Liang, brilliant but a complete asshole."

Ma Dai began to laugh. "You're honest aren't you?" He stopped laughing when he realized his cousin wasn't even cracking a smile.

"I don't find your lack of finesse and respect amusing." Chao pointed out.

"Then I'll leave, this is the way I am. I've had to deal with this kind of shit from Cao Cao and I'll be damned if I'm going to take it from you too. I have an option this time; I can leave whenever I want. Don't threaten me, it only makes me loose my temper and if you want to know how that goes ask Zhou Yu how his nuts are feeling next time you see him." Cal crossed her arms. Talking about her stay with the Wei ruler had only made her more aware of how damned lucky she was to be with Shu and how good it felt to be uninhibited.

"Don't ever compare me to him, either. You've seen what I can do. I do not make idle threats." Ma Chao stood up his eyes filed with pent up rage.

"Why don't you ask me how we extracted the information from that spy, or better yet ask Lu Bu. It will give you boys something to talk about on your ride to Xu Chang. Right before you're both executed."

"Both of you need to calm down. I'd like to hear more about Shu before you start brawling." Ma Dai nudged Cal. "Please."

Chao turned and went back over to the window, his back to the room. "Go ahead, girl."

"Eat me, jackass." She stormed out of the room and slammed the door. "Little stuck up….."

"I don't remember dismissing you." Chao threw open the door and hollered.

"I don't remember saying I gave a fuck about insulting your myopic sense of honor."

"At least I have a sense of honor."

"Well you certainly don't have a wealth of insults in your vocabulary." She ducked as he threw a vase at her.

"So, you insult me in my own house and don't think I'm going to get offended?"

"I've had enough of your house rules anyway! I'm sleeping in the barn where the company's a hell of a lot more respectable. I'll be gone tomorrow. I've been away from the people I actually care about too long." She kicked the remaining portion of the vase into Lu Bu's door. He'd never wake up, the man slept like the dead. More then likely he's open his door in the morning and try to hide the broken vase so he wouldn't have to pay for it.

"Good! I'd hate to have anyone mistake you for one of my concubines, they'd loose respect for me!" He slammed the study door shut.

"_That_ was mature." Dai said only to have Chao glare at him.

-----------------

Lu Bu heard the rooster crow at dawn and rolled out of bed refreshed. Too bad the Ma kid didn't run a household like Dong Zhou, he would have slept more comfortably with some beautiful company. He yawned and looked outside to see the camp alive already. _The young have too much energy. _He sighed and got dressed. Hopefully the cooking was halfway decent, the room service obviously wasn't. He looked around for some fresh water, annoyed that no one had delivered any yet. It could be outside the door. Yes, they were probably afraid of him, those meek little servant girls. He opened the door to find a crushed vase instead of a pitcher of water. Lu Bu popped his head out into the hallway, no one there. Good. He gently lifted the dresser next to the door and kicked the broken vase shards under it.

------------------

Ma Chao sat up on Tong Gate and looked around. Everything was a mess. The fields around the gate were covered with bodies and the predators were feasting on them. He thought about the battle the previous day, how close he was to having both Han Sui and Cao Cao. Yet both men had escaped with their lives because of the Shu officers that Liu Bei had sent to 'help'.

"You're looking really dapper this morning, trying to impress anyone?" Ma Dai strolled up behind him hands wrapped around a cup of tea.

"It's so damned hot already; this day's going to be horrible on the men."

"You're ignoring my question Chao." Dai laughed knowing his poor cousin had women all over him, all the time. But he was focused on revenge at the moment and they would have to wait.

"Are you talking about Lu Bu's consort?"

"She's very forward with her attention isn't she?" Dai punched his cousin's arm.

"She fought well though, saved my neck-literally."

"Chao, you're looking at a field of Lu Bu's work. He was over here the whole time. That man is a fighter."

"I've made a decision if that's what you're trying to get at."

"You didn't appreciate my idle chatter?"

"I'm going to do what I think my father would have done." Chao sighed, how he missed his family.

----------------

Cal brushed Ares's sleek coat and tried to ignore her throbbing wrist. Part of her wanted to go home so bad she wanted to leave this instant, but the other part reminded her that she had orders. "Bring back Ma Chao." Cal repeated to herself. Simple right? Simple for someone like Liu Bei or Sun Shang Xiang who had charisma. But she was not the person for this job; she didn't play well with others. Lu Bu was trying to be nice, which only made it that much more obvious that he was up to something. At least he was going to be going his separate way, he was just so anxious. Too bad she'd have to go back to Liu Bei and tell him she failed him and come back without anyone. Just one ugly little Roman girl with a wrist the size of her huge hips. Funny how she had been picked for her job in Rome because she was so normal looking, and normal looking people didn't stand out. It never bothered her until she was around beautiful women that could fight. She saw how men looked at them, Shang and Ying both, and she couldn't help but be jealous. Calpurnia Quinirius did not meet anyone's standards of what a lady should be, and it was beginning to bother her. Seeing her friends happy was great, but then the envy kicked in. Why couldn't she find someone, then maybe it would be easier to forget about Rome and the specialists legion and everything. The she could be a Shu general like the other girls. She knew Ma Chao wasn't the one, he was way too good for her and she'd be lucky if she even got within ten feet of his tent more-or-less in his bed. _I really am a whore, all I want is to get in his pants._ No, she did want more but it was well out of her reach. But if she convinced herself she just wanted to be a slut, maybe it wouldn't hurt so much.

Ares moved away from her and over to the new appearance, who had bribed him with a handful of carrots. He loved these people; they all treated him so well! Not to mention that white mare was mighty fine. He glanced over at Lotus and nickered seductively.

"I'm sorry about last night. I was rude and you were a guest in my house, not to mention you helped us repel Cao Cao. I apologize." Ma Chao was back in full battle armor and had his spear in hand. He watched Ares give Lotus a look that was greatly unappreciated.

Cal was getting ready to saddle her horse and didn't want to have to turn around. She sighed. Reluctantly she turned to him. "I was not on my best behavior; I quickly forgot that I was here on Liu Bei's behalf. Sorry, I don't want this to be a bad reflection on him."

"Shall we forget it ever happened?" Chao asked knowing how ashamed his father would be if he had heard him last night.

"Definitely." She smiled warmly, she had been so quick to shame her lord it was embarrassing. _He is adorable, too bad I'll never see him again._

"We'll be ready to ride out within the hour." He turned to the stable.

"For?"

"You're the one who knows where your lord is, I hope."

-----------------

"Where we going?" Lu Bu led Red Hare up to the well for one last drink before the ride out.

"Luo Castle." Cal replied.

"So you win." He filled his canteen.

"I don't know how I did it." She watched Ma Chao assemble his men.

"You yelled back." Ma Dai walked his horse up to the well and smiled at the girl.

"I yelled a lot of things I wish I could take back. I didn't behave like an officer of Shu. Wei maybe…"

"You obviously said the right things, I'm glad you did." Dai nodded his goodbye and joined his cousin.

"When did all this yelling happen?" Lu Bu scratched his head and watched Cal burst into laughter.


	21. Taking Luo Castle

Chapter 21

Luo Castle

"So Jiang Wei, you are how old?" Zhuge Liang looked at the young lad who he had snatched from the grasps of Cao Cao.

"Nineteen, my lord."

_Finally, someone who shows me the respect I deserve_. "I am looking for a pupil, and understudy if you will, to school in methods of strategy."

"I am honored, but does Shu not have Pang Tong and your wife, Yue Ying?"

"They are set in their ways and in many ways they are wrong."

"Then I gladly accept your offer."

"Excellent! You will begin immediately." Liang rubbed his hands together; something was finally going his way.

----------------

"Well my friend, are you sure this is what you want to do?" Huang Zhong looked over at his bizarre traveling companion, the same man who had just saved his life a week ago when Han Xuan went mad and tried to kill him. All he did was suggest that Liu Bei wasn't such a bad guy.

"Must….Fight…..Somewhere."

"There are a lot of armies out there, we can keep going. Wu is not too far away, they are a bit more established."

"No…..pretty boys."

"Wei Yan, you of all people can't judge people on their appearance." Zhong sighed and looked over at the man.

"Stupid….Old….Man." Wei Yan grinned, he liked the old archer. He never judged him and he never failed to speak his mind. "Wu….fight….. for…themselves."

"Yes I do believe they do. That would rule us out wouldn't it? Liu Bei allegedly treats everyone equal, he even lets his women fight. I do have to admit, that is something I would like to see."

"Join…then." He waved his hand at the old man, "You first."

Huang Zhong smiled, this would be interesting. They would meet with this Zhuge Liang, a man rumored to be the unparalleled genius in China. He was glad Wei Yan felt the same way about Wu that he did, if they went there they would surely be pushed aside in favor of one of the family. Liu Bei seemed to have the same dedication to family as Sun Jian, but the Shu army was a family of friends-a hell of a lot more impressive. Friends you can choose, family you just get stuck with.

-------------------

Cal rode along the mountain pass by herself, ahead of Ma Chao's army. Ma Chao was chatting with his men, as a good general would. It only made it more obvious to Cal that she was wasting her time with him, a man like that was way too good for her. Lu Bu was lurking around the rear guard, obviously hoping to find a moment to ride off on his own. But she sensed he was becoming more relaxed about the current arrangements with Shu, not that he had much of a choice, she had stolen his one potential officer away from him. She wished he would leave, despite herself she was actually beginning to like him. His arrogance was forgivable when you fought beside him and she couldn't help but respect him for that, he was an incredible fighter. She turned around and watched Ma Chao laugh at a something a Colonel had told him. She couldn't help but smile herself, he was just perfect. She refocused her attention back to the road, and remembered how well he had fought. Ma Chao was just as good as Lu Bu, something she never thought she would come across. Maybe he was the replacement for the big brawny bastard. She rubbed her wrist and couldn't help but feel greedy, she wanted to bring them both home to Liu Bei. Having them would make up for the disadvantage in numbers that they always encountered. How long was this stupid road, anyway?

---------------------

"This is fuckin awesome!" Zhang Fei twirled his spear and laughed.

"Are you sure you want us to march ahead to Jing?" Guan Yu looked at Pang Tong who had just delivered the good news. With any luck the combined force of Guan Yu and Zhang Fei would not have to deal with Zhuge Liang for a full month. They would move ahead of the main force and set up for an attack on the Jing province, with Liu Bei meeting up with them after the attack on Luo Castle. Zhuge Liang had gone off on a separate mission with Yue Ying in tow, partially because of wounded pride, but mostly to seek out new officers. Yu suspected he was looking for men that did not humiliate him constantly.

"I will have more then enough men brother." Liu Bei chuckled. "You do forget I know how to fight."

"Stop arguing Yu! This is the best damned plan anyone has come up with yet! Pang Tong, you kick ass." Fei slapped the cloaked man on the back.

"Well, I aim to please." Tong giggled. "I don't see Liu Zhang being a difficult man to subdue. We will have an army of myself, Zhao Yun, Sun Shang Xiang and our lord. More than enough."

"Any word from Tong Gate?" Yun asked as he toyed with his War Su Gai.

"No, not yet. Even if they did send a rider out with a message, I doubt they'd get through. Cao Cao still has a heavy concentration of scouts in those mountains." Liu Bei tried to ease the worry he saw on Yun's face. Both Yu and Fei were overconfident, there was no one that could beat Lu Bu and Cal would easily tear up people if she stuck close to the mighty warrior. Combined talents of force and common sense would ensure their safe return. But Liu Bei was not as convinced; then again he worried about everything these days. Ma Chao would have a smaller force against Cao Cao, everyone had the disadvantage in numbers to Wei. Even if they did win, Cal would still have to win over Ma Chao. And he knew the young girl was lacking in the talents of persuasion, unless she tried to seduce him. Lu Bu did have the upper hand there; he could be very friendly when he wanted to be. That is what bothered him. A young lord like Ma Chao, out for revenge, would be easily won over by the promise of joining forces with the great Lu Bu. Maybe Cal wasn't the right choice for the job after all.

"What's going on?" Shang strolled up to the table, sweating from a good practice session with her bodyguards. Tong looked up at her with sparkling eyes and she gave him a peck on the cheek.

"Ohh….I'm changing my alliance to you." He sighed.

"What is it about you that they can't resist?" Yun was confused. He was having such a hard time with women right now; he couldn't seem to stop getting slapped in the face.

"Dunno." Tong answered honestly. "Sex toys?"

"Ewww…no." Shang walked over to her husband. "So Xuande, what's the plan?"

"We're leaving you in his hands." Yu pointed at Tong then picked up his spear and stood up. "So don't distract him too much."

"We're attacking the castle tomorrow, by way of the mountains." Liu Bei blushed a bit when she sat on his lap. His officers smirked to themselves.

"Try not to miss us too much!" Fei waved as Yu drug him away from the table.

"Try not to drink too much!" Answered Yun.

---------------

Lu Bu watched the tail end of Ma Chao's small army pick up the pace as the cooler mountain air swept over them. Red Hare was angry, he hated being behind anyone, more or less an entire army. Lu Bu scratched his neck sympathetically; he had the same feelings about it. But he needed to be here, it gave him time to think and plan. It also gave him an easy escape route if his reasoning led him to believe that returning to Shu was a bad idea. Ma Chao was lost; the young lord was actually excited about joining Liu Bei. That left him with no one. There wasn't a single person that he could convince to join him on his conquest of China, and those were bad odds. Remaining with Liu Bei was the only option, witch didn't bother him as much as it used to. The Shu leader had a way of winning people over, not that Lu Bu was going to change his ways or anything. At this point, China looked like it was going to be split in three for a long time, and he would just have to wait until the three superpowers wore each other out or someone showed a weakness he could exploit.

------------------

"No Huang Zhong, it is I who is honored by your presence." Zhuge Liang bowed, but not too much. Ass kissing was not amongst his favorite activities.

"So can Liu Bei use an old geezer like me?" Zhong chuckled as his self-insult.

"Age is to be revered, not ridiculed." Liang answered.

Jiang Wei's eyes glowed in admiration. How did he come up with all these great lines?

Yue Ying rolled her eyes. Leave it to her husband to use fortune cookie sayings in polite conversation.

"I also brought a friend, he is a fierce fighter. Forgive his, uh, speech impediment. An old war injury, you know?" Zhong threw a salute as he exited the tent.

"I do have to wonder if your friend is having this much luck acquiring officers." Liang sneered at his wife, the bitterness of her affair still lingered. And it was that little Mediterranean bitch's fault.

"I suspect she is doing just fine husband." Ying shot back emotionlessly. The nights without Tai were making her less and less forgiving of Liang's snide remarks.

"Mmm...." He let his attention drift back to the flap of the tent where a beast was standing. Evolution had apparently allowed his breed to become a biped, for whatever reason.

"Name…Wei Yan." He looked at the robed bastard, seeing that he instantly took a dislike to him. Asshole. Then there was the boy, who had obviously just crawled out of the strategist's ass. But the woman, she was different. This must have been who the old man was talking about, the woman warrior.

Ying watched her husband's eyes cloud with disgust. He wasn't going to even give this man a chance because he looked like a savage. She couldn't help but feel she needed to champion him. "Thank you for coming, sir. We have heard good things about you from your friend."

"Old man……good."

"Indeed. He has offered to join Liu Bei's forces; do you wish to do the same?" She smiled and noticed then Wei Yan was grinning at her. He had that same odd quality that Pang Tong had, that weird but likeable thing. She couldn't help but feel appreciated.

"Yes….angel." Wei Yan bowed to her, she was like a goddess of war.

"I would prefer if you'd refrained from hitting on my wife, thank you. You are dismissed; Shu doesn't need a brigand like yourself." Liang fanned himself and held his head up haughtily.

Wei Yan turned towards him. "Grrrrrrr."

"Shall I escort him out, Master Zhuge?" Jiang Wei stood, spear in hand.

"I hope he is capable of sniffing his way out. Probably scent marked everything on the way in." Liang got up and gathered his papers.

"Bitch." Wei Yan grumbled and ducked out of the tent.

"So whelp, how'd it go?" Zhong watched his friend charge past. "That good huh?"

"Dickhead." Snorted the masked man.

"I agree, he is quite self absorbed. He refused you?" the old man frowned.

"Yes."

"I don't know what to say, Wei Yan." Zhong shook his head, it wasn't supposed to go like this.

"Go to Liu Bei, he is much more understanding." Yue Ying ran up to them.

"Angel." Wei Yan's eyes twinkled.

"Thank you." She smiled, he was endearing. "My husband is finicky, and always moody. Liu Bei will not refuse an officer of your quality; he will see the good in you."

"But…..bastard….refused?"

"I'll let you in on a little secret, my husband hates practically everyone. And the feeling is returned, triple fold. If you go to the main Shu camp and offer your services to our lord directly, I guarantee the next time we speak we will be allies." Ying smiled as he kissed her hand.

"I…..go." He ran off in his peculiar way.

"And you're married to him?" Zhong looked over at Liang as he stepped out of his tent with Jiang Wei on his heels.

-----------------

Cal sighed as she hung her shield on the side of her saddle. Her stupid wrist kept swelling and she kept having to take out the bracer and extra notch. Unfortunately there were no more notches. Reluctantly she removed the protector and looked at the joint, she could feel her blood pumping through it and it echoed into the back of her skull.

"Oh my God, why didn't you say something?" Ma Chao had come up to check on her.

"It's nothing." She looked for somewhere to hide he arm so he wouldn't be able to see it. Damn her and her slutty attire, there was nothing available!

"Nothing? You got that because of me!" He grabbed Ares bridle and started to pull her off the road, towards a stream. "It needs to be taken care of."

She tried to turn her horse away, but the every so faithful steed was busy sniffing Lotus's mane. "Lord Ma, I'll take care of it myself."

"Yes I can see how well you've done with that so far." He jumped off his horse and lifted her out of the saddle.

Cal couldn't believe that she was unable to do anything, she was paralyzed. What the hell was wrong with her? She couldn't think straight around him and now that he was touching her she felt a tingly shutter go through her entire body, followed by her face turning beet red. This was a completely new sensation, a feeling that she never knew she was capable of. Was this…love?

"Come over here and let the water run over it." He took her hand and held it so that he could guide it into the stream.

"Something wrong?" Lu Bu sauntered up and Red Hare nickered. Was that little gray bastard moving in on his mare?

"General Quin..er… cough injured her arm while shielding me." Ma Chao touched her shoulder. "Keep it under the water while I go get some bandages. Ok?"

Cal could only nod. In addition to not being about to regain control of her motor functions, she was also speechless. She watched as he leapt on Lotus and galloped up to the road. Ares neighed seductively, probably and equine comment on the mare's ass.

Lu Bu dismounted and sat down next to her. He actually felt bad; he knew how this would turn out. "What are you doing?"

"I'm sticking my hand in the water, are you blind?" She looked away from him, knowing he wasn't as oblivious to her feelings as Ma Chao was.

"You're going to get hurt." He cautioned

"What do you care?" she snapped back.

"I don't." He shook his head, it was best for her to figure it out on her own. Like he did. She did know nothing would come of it even if he shared the same feelings, didn't she?

"He's just being nice and I'm just being flirty. Nothing wrong with that."

"Except you're in love with him." Lu Bu pointed out. "It's written all over your face."

"Nonsense."

"You're turning out to be a good officer, I don't want some stupid emotion ruining all my hard work." He watched Ma Chao return, picking his way back down to the stream.

She stood up and glared at him. "Don't accuse me of being weak."

"Just calling it as I see it."

"Get that arm back in the water!" Ma Chao shouted as he slid off Lotus. He got agitated that she was joined by two very attentive stallions.

Cal couldn't come up with a snappy comeback and she saw the look on Lu Bu's face. He was right, she couldn't handle her feelings. This stupid love shit was crippling her. In vain she tried to put a sentence together, but defeated just said, "Yes, sir."

Chao handed some wraps to Lu Bu, "If you wouldn't mind holding those for me." He fiddled with some ointment bottles. "I don't know if these work on people, but they do the trick when Lotus is hurt."

Cal caught Lu Bu's chuckle and she stared at the running water, trying to regain her composure. Chao reached in and took her hand again, placing it gently on his knee. Again there was that unmistakable tingle and she looked into Chao's eyes. He had no clue, this was something he would have done for any one of his soldiers and he would have shown more concern if he was attending to his mare. Maybe if she told him….then he rubbed some oily potent ointment on her wrist and she caught her breath. Again Lu Bu chuckled.

"If I may have that bandage, General?"

-------------------------

"So the goal of this campaign is to capture Cheng Du?" Jiang Wei looked over the map, pushing his long hair behind his ears.

"Yes." Zhuge Liang looked at the young boy, who was concentrating heavily on the map. These last few weeks with the lad by his side made him feel better about himself. Ying was obviously miserable without her lover and it satisfied him even more to ignore her in favor of his apprentice. Jiang Wei was so dedicated to his studies, that he even ignored the attention of the local ladies. Quite a feat for a handsome teenager. Now he waited for the boy to come up with the same conclusion that he had, before Pang Tong got his jealous ass involved.

"But now there will be this huge territory to defend. I understand the need for land, a place to replenish and revitalize your troops, but now you are attached to it. The mobility of the army is limited."

"Very good!" Liang laughed. It was so nice to have someone on his side, the place Ying was supposed to be. Instead she was taking everyone's side but his.

Jiang Wei looked up as Zhuge Liang put his hand on his shoulder. "I am glad to see you happy Master Zhuge."

"Please, we are friends now. Call me Kongming."

"If you call me Buoyue."

"A deal."

"As friends, can I ask you something….personal?"

"Of course." Liang kept smiling. It would be nice to be able to confide in someone again.

"I couldn't help but notice that you and Yue Ying….are distant. Despite being husband and wife."

Liang let his smile fade. They were not that close yet, or were they. Could he be the one he could tell about his delicate problem? He had hoped Ying would understand, but instead she used it to her advantage. "Yes."

"I thought you were partners, yet she works against you most of the time." Jiang Wei was confused by them. How could a man's wife be more comfortable amongst the soldiers then with her husband?

"My wife has grown more distant because of….." he sighed, maybe it was time he got it off his chest. "Because I can't make her happy in the bedroom. She is driven by lust and I cannot satisfy her because I am unable to perform that way. A trade off apparently for my tremendous brain."

"Oh Kongming, I am sorry. How selfish she is to abandon you because of that!"

Liang suddenly felt better. That was right, she was selfish. "You are so kind, my friend. It has been so long that I have had to shoulder the guilt…but now I see that it is not my fault."

"Of course it isn't! She should be finding ways to make you happy, not herself."

"Ah, but I am a lost cause." Liang shrugged and looked back at the map.

"There are…..other ways to seek pleasure my lord." Jiang Wei let his hand run over Liang's. He felt a flutter and saw the hope in his teacher's eyes as well.

--------------------

"Ok, so Liu Bei will remain in this fort here, with Guan Ping in support." Pang Tang watched Guan Yu's oldest son beam with pride. This was an incredible assignment for someone of his age, but little did he realize that the other general's wouldn't be caught dead protecting their lord. Liu Bei was an excellent swordsman and archer; he could handle his own protection. They wanted to go out and kick some ass. "I'll take the pass here, and you, Sun Shang Xiang, will move out this pass closest to the castle."

"Are we going to hold position once we make it down the slope, to attack the castle full force?" She asked leaning over the map. It was her chance to shine.

"Yup! You get the prize." Tong tossed her a meat bun.

"Oh…I didn't know we were playing." Yun moaned, he was losing at everything this week. He felt a bit lost without Cal, she had become his closest friend now that Liu Bei had a wife again. There just wasn't anyone else he could talk to candidly anymore.

"Whine whine whine!" Tong poked him in the shoulder with his staff. "You get to attack across the river, since you lost the game."

"How is that bad?"

"There's snake fish in those waters lad!" Tong warned. "They're all over the place, quite slippery and smelly. Tough luck huh?"

"Grrr.." He hated snake fish. They were tasty but annoying. A fish that could get out of the water, crawl across land for days killing everything in sight and then move to a new body of water and multiply was bad enough. Then add the fact that you couldn't kill them, well that sucked too. The snake fish would take days to die once you stabbed them, it was ridiculous. Now they littered the battlefield, he could see them from here. Jumping across the dusty land, devouring frogs and birds, and stinking like dead fish. Uggggghhhh.

"Excuse…….me." Wei Yan stumbled across the war council on accident. But hell, if you were lucky….

"Hello." Liu Bei stood up, not knowing if this stranger was friend or foe. "I am Liu Bei, commander here. Can I help you?"

Shang leapt up, chakrams ready. "State your business!"

"Want…. To….. Join." Wei Yan explained and bowed.

Liu Bei walked around the table and looked at the man. He seemed honest. "Please, warrior, tell me your name."

"Wei Yan."

"You wish to join Shu?"

"Yes."

"Then you are welcome, please join us. You must be hungry." He watched the man look up happily. How many people had turned him away? He had heard of this man, he was a crazy fighter. He was also hard to control, but then again so was Sunny.

"Thank….you."

"You can sit next to me." Shang put away her weapons and watched him smile at her.

"Thank you ……angel."

Shang giggled as he kissed her hand.

"Oh…now I have competition! Blast!" Tong handed the new guy a plate of Empress Chicken.

"Lady…warrior….kind."

"Oh and complements too! I'll have to turn up the charm!" Tong rolled up the map. "How do you feel about snakefish, Wei Yan?"

"Yummy."

"Good, you get to help Zhao Yun."

------------------

"Well while you're all here, we might as well review the map." Ma Dai rode up. "Unless I'm interrupting something?"

_At least the cousin isn't as blind_. "No, just bandaging up a fetlock…I mean wrist." Lu Bu smiled. It was obvious Ma Chao knew a lot about horses and simply transferred his knowledge to people, hoping it worked out as well.

"All done. Feel any better?" Chao looked at his work triumphantly. _Now that was good bandaging._

"I've seen mummies with less complex wraps. "She mumbled remembering her brief trip to Egypt. "And the ointment is beginning to burn."

"Ah, just the liniment doing its job." Chao waved off her concern. "Let's look at that map, Dai."

"Here's the Luo Castle area. I believe that Liu Zhang will be bringing up reinforcements from here." He pointed to the northern most pass.

"I'll take them then." Lu Bu volunteered.

"Take the infantry; they'll be able to negotiate those narrow passes." Ma Chao looked up at Lu Bu who nodded his approval. "I suspect that Liu Bei will have taken this fort in the southeast, so that means they will push towards the castle from the mountain passes. If Liu Zhang knows they're coming he will set up ambush parties. He does love to take out the commanders before they can do any damage, I suspect he will try and snipe at them."

"Without a doubt. Those slopes are steep and very vulnerable to archer attack from the cliffs." Dai tried to remember the names of the slopes from his last visit there.

"This is really beginning to burn." Cal said fidgeting with her bandage

"Stop messing with it." Chao gently took her chin in his strong calloused hand. "Or else."

She whimpered and he obviously took it as submission on her part. _Oh_ _what incredible hands he has! How nice those would feel running all over her…_

"This one is the fallen phoenix slope and this one…" Dai continued

"What? What did you call that?" Cal snapped out of her daydream and looked over at Dai who was startled by the urgency in her voice.

"The fallen phoenix slope." Dai repeated cautiously.

"Oh god, Tong. He's in danger." Cal looked to Lu Bu who didn't understand. "Don't you get it? They call him the young phoenix, it's an omen. He needs me!" She pushed past the men but was stopped by Ma Chao's arms.

"Easy! What are you talking about?"

"Pang Tong! He's in danger! Let go of me, I need to help him!"

"Cal, You need to remember you're not on your own right now. You are part of an army, and if you take off I'm not going to be able to approach Luo castle without Liu Bei taking me as an enemy!"

"Then get your ass in the saddle and let's go, Chao! You just got rid of the infantry, so that leaves the cavalry for you. Let's go." She pulled away from him, only to have him pull her back.

"You want me to charge into battle to protect one man, because you're superstitious?"

"It is kind of creepy, really." Dai had to admit. He rolled up his map as Lu Bu mounted up.

"Listen, you are welcome to do whatever you want. But I'm not going to let my friend be slaughtered." Cal was pissed.

"Fine, we'll go see if we can help this Doomed Phoenix of yours. I owe you that much." He let her go and looked to Lu Bu. "Take the infantry and meet us there. Ma Dai will accompany you."

"Fine, good luck." Lu Bu turned away to take command of the small regiment. He was genuine, he liked Pang Tong, the little sage was funny.

"Come on!" Cal was in the saddle and Ares was bouncing around, he knew there was something not quite right.

Chao jumped onto Lotus and galloped after her. "Men, we are needed at Luo Castle to support Liu Bei. I know that we were once allies with Liu Zhang, but times are changing. We must make decisions that benefit China, not just our province."

Cal pulled up beside him. "Riders of the Xiliang Cavalry, I beg of you to ride like you have never ridden before. Our presence is needed at Luo Castle immediately even though they may not be aware of it. I came to Tong Gate to assist you in repelling Cao Cao, even though I had no connections to the Xiliang province. Please, help me as I have helped you. These men we ride to assist are my family and I'm afraid they're going to be cut down like your Lord was. Are you with me?"

The men cheered, the little woman had fought her heart out at Tong Gate. To the point of almost loosing her head to Cao Cao. Besides, they were anxious for a fight.

Ma Chao smiled, it amazed him how the strangest people always made the most inspiring speeches. "XiLiang Cavalry, FORWARD!"

"At a GALLOP!" Cal added as she let Ares go. _Tong, honey, I'm coming!_

_----------------------------_

"So you like these snake fish do you?" Zhao Yun asked his new comrade who had a burlap bag and was collecting them.

"Tasty."

"Yes, but." He stuck his tongue out. "They are eating the weirdest things. Don't they taste like the stuff they eat?"

"Pork….fish!" Wei Yan waved one of the death-defying amphibious carp at him.

"Ugggghhh." Yun shook his head. He actually liked the guy and couldn't help but think that Zhuge Liang would hate him.

Wei Yan threw two more in the sack by their tails. …for…you. You…like."

----------------------

Pang Tong rode at the head of his division, right leg over the pommel of his saddle, reading the map. "Who was the scout who wrote this?" Tong leaned down to Cao Rui, his bodyguard.

"I believe that would be Lu Kang, he's got awful penmanship. Writes like a degenerate." Rui looked back and saw the man he was talking about. "Kang, a word?"

"Sir?" The man looked up hoping to get a pat on the back for his scouting.

"Do you write with the pen in your mouth?" Tong asked the young man.

"No."

"I'm surprised he can even write." Rui added

"Boy, General Quinirius writes better and she can't write or read a word in Chinese. Why the hell does this say?" Tong showed him the scribe.

"Oh that's where we are right now!" Kang smiled.

"Wow, Kang you are good. That promotion is just around the corner." Rui shook his head, some of these people they made bodyguards just were worthless. He's rather lead a pack of wild prairie chickens into battle.

"What does it say?" Tong sighed.

"Oh, 'Fallen Phoenix Slope'."

"Well shit, that isn't good." Tong sat back up in the saddle and looked around him. A small pebble fell off the ridge and figures appeared. Then he looked ahead and about fifty archers blocked the road. "Run, Fluffy!" He jumped off the horse and raised his staff, but there was a sudden pain in his left shoulder…then another.

---------------------

"Forward!" Sun Shang Xiang was having the time of her life. Commander of her own division, tons of men to kill and no brothers by her side to 'protect' her. Those stupid boys were always getting in the way of her best moves. Suddenly archers were everywhere, what the hell was up with that? Oh well, they would just have to die. She launched into a musou and began to hack into them, not realizing she was burying herself in the enemy unit and allowing herself to be surrounded.

----------------

Cal saw the arrows fly and Fluffy running back up the slope as the cavalry charged up the hill. She leaned in over Ares neck and plead, "Please, give me everything you have. _Auxilii_! (L.aid)"

Ma Chao watched the little horse edge away from him with a burst of speed. Lotus tried in vain to keep up, but she was tired from the ride and apparently was not as fast as the Arabian. "CHARGE!" He lifted his spear and rode into the battle.

"Get off of him you sons of bitches!" Cal dismounted her horse and landed next to Pang Tong who was lying on the ground. "You shall pay for this!" She stood by her friend and used her musou as Ma Chao rode up and cleared the archers with one sonic boom of his spear. His cavalry charged up the slope and Pang Tong's men climbed up the cliff to attack the archers.

Chao looked down at Cal as she tossed off the man's straw hat and dust mask. They were too late.

"Tong?" She looked over him and slapped his face a bit. "Come on baby, talk to me."

"Pst, phuch, ack." He spat, startling both warriors. "Ahhhhhh, not….another….pole arm."

Ma Chao narrowed his eyes as Cal smacked the man in the head. _They are all odd._

"You bastard." She watched his eyes open and his mouth break into a smile. She ran her hand over his head, where there was a bit of blood. He must have taken a hit to the head and passed out. But there were still two arrows in his shoulder. "Are you hurt anywhere else?"

"You brought a friend….but what will Zhou Tai think?" He winked at her.

"We need to get you back to HQ, and have these wound looked at." She tried to sit him up, but Ma Chao stopped her.

"Let me." He lifted the smaller man up off the ground and held him in his arms. "Where to?"

"Up the pass, hand a right at the big rock, castle's up ahead two miles." Tong giggled, "My hero!"

"Ignore him." Cal said and touched Chao's arm in gratitude. She watched her handsome warrior swing into the saddle, without even being slightly put off by the small burden he now carried. "Ares!"

--------------------

"Are you still good friends with Zhang Bao?" Liu Bei asked the ever-so-close Guan Ping. Apparently the young Guan boy thought protecting the Shu lord meant being on top of him. Bei's bodyguards mumbled angrily as Guan Ping took their place.

"Yes, actually we are sworn brothers now. Like our fathers." Ping smiled, he was proud of his alliance with Fei's son. Even though Bao was usually in a whorehouse.

"If only Chan were a bit older." Bei smiled, but had to wonder. Liu Chan was not turning out as he hoped. The boy was growing up, he was now almost three years old, but he was so shy. Zhuge Liang had taken him on as a pupil, figuring the earlier the better. But deep down Liu Bei feared his son would turn out to be a horrible emperor…..it was just a feeling. And he felt guilty for feeling that He wished Sunny would stop being stubborn about children, he knew their child would be capable. But his wife was not ready for that, in fact, he feared she would never be ready.

"My lord, riders are coming. It looks like General Quinirius!" Ping smiled, he secretly had a crush on the woman. If his father knew….there would be hell to pay.

Liu Bei let his worries slip away as he saw the familiar gray horse and his owner. He smiled, but it was only briefly, he saw another rider. And he was carrying Pang Tong. Suddenly his heart fell.

"My lord!" Cal galloped up and she saw his face wracked with concern. "We arrived in time, but Tong just had to get shot a few times. You know how he is about attention."

Ma Chao rode up and frowned as the little cloaked man began to holler dramatically.

"ARG! BLKK! RRUR! Not….another….spear!"

Liu Bei cocked an eyebrow. "Glad you're alive Shiyuan." He couldn't help but smile. Then he noticed there was a new man. "You must be Lord Ma Chao."

Cough "ACK!" Tong shut up when Cal wrapped her hand around his mouth.

"Chao, this is our Lord Liu Bei. Bei, this is Lord Ma Chao." Cal smiled. Then suddenly flushed when she realized she got away with calling her love by his first name.

"Nice to meet you sir, I have heard volumes about you." Chao smiled as Cal yelped from Tong biting her hand.

"I can't believe you bit me! After all I did to get here in time to save your weird little concubine-stench ass." She looked at him, faking an appalled stare.

"You were late!" Tong stuck out his tongue.

"Can I put him somewhere?" Chao asked, realizing how odd he looked carrying around a 5'3" cloaked sage.

"My tent." Liu Bei moved Hex Mark past them and led the way to his accommodations.

"Ha! Now _you_ sleep in _their_ love-stained sheets!" Cal pushed his straw hat down on his head.

Chao couldn't help but smile, even though he didn't know any of these people that well. He could see how attached they all were to each other….he had made a good decision.

--------------------

"What is he doing here?" Zhuge Liang asked, politely. He had brought reinforcements, as planned, but he came across Wei Yan when he got here.

"He asked to join us." Zhao Yun shrugged, "And he's pretty good."

"Perhaps it is better to leave this until after the battle?" Yue Ying rode up and saw Wei Yan.

"Fine." Liang let it go. "Lure Zhang Ren out."

"Let me guess, pull back and taunt?" Zhao Yun sighed. It had been so nice without the pain in the ass here.

"Yes, of course. You are learning 'little dragon'" he smiled and looked back to Jiang Wei, "Let us go meet up with Lord Liu Bei."

"He is in a good mood, isn't he?" Yun asked Ying as she waved to Wei Yan.

"Yeah, he's been like that all day." Ying shrugged. She smiled when Huang Zhong gave Wei Yan a hug. Then she turned to Yun's welcome face.

"It's almost as if….." Yun caught Ying's glance. Together they said, "He got laid."

---------------------

"Don't pull my hair!"

"You're just here to look at me naked!"

"You flash me all the time, I've already seen you naked!"

"Oh, you just want to take advantage of me in my helpless state!"

"And I'm sure you'll accuse me of giving you an erection too!"

"That comes with the territory, baby!"

Chao waited outside the tent, laughing as the two yelled at each other. Liu Bei emerged and shook his head. "I take it he will be ok?"

"Yes." Liu Bei answered. "I'm sorry, they're always like this."

"It's fine, I'm glad we were in time." Chao turned as Cal came out.

"What are our orders sir? Lord Ma has a rather exhausted Cavalry unit parked outside the north gate. Shall we proceed down the slope that Pang Tong was heading down?"

"Why are you so serious all of a sudden?" Liu Bei scratched his chin.

"My favorite person approaches." She nodded to Zhuge Liang's appearance. "I want to go kill something."

"Where's Lu Bu?" Liu Bei looked to the two young officers.

"Attacking from a narrow pass up north, to wipe out enemy reinforcements. I gave him my Infantry regiment." Chao answered.

"He'll be here." Cal touched Liu Bei's shoulder. She knew he was skeptical. "Shall we attack?"

"Yes, Ma Chao can take command of Pang Tong's unit and leave his cavalry here, to rest. You, my dear, you better report to your commanding officer before she finds out your fighting with someone else."

"Where is she?"

"The pass north of the castle. Hurry if you actually want to get some fighting in." Liu Bei watched her ride off then informed the clueless Ma Chao, "My wife, Sun Shang Xiang. She is Cal's division commander, and I won't invoke my spouse's wrath over something like that."

"Understood."

"Zhuge Liang, you have been missed." Liu Bei offered his best phony smile. "You are just in time to meet Lord Ma Chao before he rides into battle for us."

-------------------

"Hey there sunshine!" Cal jumped off her horse and stuck the dismount perfectly, "I'm here!"

"About damned time." Shang pointed over at the castle. "They're getting ahead of us!"

"Who's the old guy and his furry friend?" Cal was surprised to see Yun had two new officers.

"Wei Yan's the cool one, I don't know who the old one is. Must have come back with Liang." Shang looked back at her men, they had finally regrouped.

"Tong got ambushed; he's hurt, but ok." Cal passed along the news.

"Well then let's seek vengeance!" Shang ran off into battle.

"Oh and I brought back a hot guy." Cal hollered after her, but she was out of earshot.

------------------

"Hey Zhang Ren! Your mother's an epileptic whore!" Huang Zhong smirked, "How's that for a taunt?"

"Marry me!" Cal smiled; the old man was pretty cool. The six Shu officers sat outside Luo castle, behind a rock, chatting and waiting.

"Dirty….old…man." Wei Yan punched him playfully. "Wei…. Yan's….. angels."

"Sorry, you heard the man. I'm taken." Cal shrugged. She was humored by the fact that the new officers had instantly bonded with them because of an intense dislike of Zhuge Liang.

"Who's that?" Yun asked pointing to Ma Chao who had joined up with Lu Bu on the northern slope.

"Lu Bu." Cal dodged his swing. "Ma Chao. Isn't he gorgeous?"

"He's no Xuande." Shang smiled.

"Or Zhou Tai." Ying smiled dreamily.

"Well since you've taken him, let Cal have the new guy." Yun smiled, "She told us. It made us all so happy that old Kongming was getting the shaft that we helped her sneak off to see the lovestruck pirate. Ah, as you say, we're going to hell anyhow."

"Good….for….you!" Wei Yan patted Ying on the head.

"Yeah, whelp, nice call." Zhong gave her a thumbs up.

"So who doesn't know?" Cal asked.

"Let's see, that leaves Liu Bei and Zhang Fei. Although Liang doesn't know who it is." Ying was happy she didn't have to hide it anymore.

"Good thing you didn't tell Fei, he'd make a song about it." Shang shook her head.

"How dare you insult my mother!" Zhang Ren burst out of the gates. "Open all the gates! Charge!"

"Hey, we forgot to run away!" Yun looked over at Yue Ying.

"Well Taunt and stand around congregating is kind of close." She smirked.

"Last one to Liu Zhang is Kongming's bitch!" Huang Zhong charged, shooting arrows like a mad man.

"Let's get this bastard and get my man a kingdom!" Shang charged.

"Yes, ma'am." She hollered over the rock but turned and hugged Yun. "Need to talk to you later."

"Glad you're home."

----------------------

"Hello! Liu Zhang, we've come for you!" Shang looked around the corner of the house.

"Surrender or get your ass kicked by a pair of girls!" Cal turned the corner and spotted him. "Just the man we're looking for."

"How dare Liu Bei attack his own kin! His is a tyrant, just like Cao Cao!" Liu Zhang raised his sword.

"Oh no you did not just call my man a tyrant!" Shang let loose on Liu Zhang and Cal just stood and watched.

"Are you just going to watch?" Huang Zhong asked.

"I'm not getting in her way." Cal shrugged and watched as Liu Bei galloped up, followed by Lu Bu and Ma Chao.

"Shang! I can't let you have his blood on your hands!" Liu Bei dismounted and drew his sword.

"I'm not letting him get away with talking shit, either!" Shang tossed Liu Zhang in the air with her Chakrams, but Liu Bei was the one who drove the finishing blow into the man-midair.

"You…traitor." Zhang muttered as he died.

Liu Bei looked down at the man he just killed. "Results validate the deeds, right?"

Cal nodded sympathetically, "Sorry."

Zhuge Liang rode up, "Well what a nice castle. Let's move camp here."

---------------------

"So are you going to stay?" Cal looked up at Ma Chao and smiled happily.

"Yes, I do believe I am." He leaned up and scratched Lotus's ears.

"Pst." Ying called over Shang. "Look, someone fell in love at first sight."

"He is kind of cute." Shang agreed.

"Who? Are you gawking at someone else?" Liu Bei looked between the two women.

"Just Ma Chao." Shang answered.

"Just?" Liu Bei smiled as his wife turned and kissed him.

"You're all I ever want!"

"So what is it that is bothering you?" Zhao Yun wrapped his arm around his friend and she put her head into his shoulder.

"Later." Cal patted his arm.

Ma Chao looked around at all the happy Shu officers. Yeah, it was a good decision.


	22. Campaign for Jing

Chapter 22

The Campaign for Jing

"Well?" Yun watched as Cal wandered over to him.

"I froze when I saw Cao Cao at Tong Gate. I was afraid." She sat down next to him and sighed as he put his arm around her.

"I don't believe that, you charge into the middle of the enemy army all the time. How can one man scare you?" Yun ran his fingers through her hair.

"The worst that they can do is kill me. With him, I know he can do much worse."

"There's something else isn't there?" He felt her sigh again.

"I'm not as confident with my new fighting style as I was…..well before. I knew I could kill him if I wanted to, but now I know I can't."

"You need to have faith in it, or else you'll never get better. You've only had that weapon a few years, the rest of us have been training with ours for our entire lives." Yun squeezed her, it was so hard for her to start over.

"I've never been afraid of anything before. I either didn't care if I died or I knew I was good enough to kill anyone in my way."

"Don't turn you back on it, it will be fine. I promise. I'm here to help, and so is everyone else. Well not our master strategist, but then again he is in a really good mood."

"Why is that?" Cal lifted her head and looked at him.

"Ying and I believe he is getting some lovin' from Jiang Wei." Yun smirked.

"Well can't say it surprises me. There aren't too many options if you can't get your penis to work." She looked at him, "What's up with your love life?"

"I keep getting slapped in the face."

"Why?"

"I don't know. I keep trying those pitiful one liners Liu Bei always uses, but they just don't like them from me." Yun shook his head.

"Well Liu Bei gets away with it because he's cute. You, well, you have the male-slut look to you."

"I do not. I never see any action!"

"But you have this pretty face, long hair, stud stance…."

"Stud stance?"

"Yeah, your spear in hand, flex those arm muscles, shift your weigh ever so slightly stance. That just screams I'm trying to get in your dress."

"It's just the way I stand!"

"Yeah and Ares just crests his neck and prances around all the time, just because it's the way he goes."

--------------

"Tong, you shouldn't be up." Ying stood and helped him to his seat.

"Ah, I can't let Wei Yan steal my women." Tong shot the masked man a smile. "I'm on to you! What the hell are you cooking?"

"Snake fish…..butter….mmmmm.."

"You have enough women in your tent, you greedy bastard." Cal walked up and sat down next to Wei Yan and Ma Chao.

"That's in my tent! Out here I am lonely!"

"How are they treating you?" Cal looked to Chao.

"Nonstop abuse." Chao smiled.

"So Wei Yan, what's up with the mask? If you've got a scar under there, we happen to have a very horny lady that goes for that kind of thing." Cal felt the blunt end of a scythe smack her on the top of the head.

"Mask……Cool."

"Can't argue with that." Huang Zhong drank some wine. "Hey Lu Bu! You part of the crowd or not?"

Lu Bu stopped grooming Red Hare and walked over to the campfire, curry comb in hand. "It depends. What's the topic of conversation? As long as it's not about Ma Chao or his appendages…."

Cal tackled him. "You are such a bastard!"

Lu Bu laughed, "I know, but it's fun."

"Actually I believe we were about to do a head count." Yun looked around. "Hmmmmm. Liu Bei and Shang are missing. Wonder how she's thanking him for her division? And let's see…..Zhuge and Jiang Wei? What?" he looked to Ying.

"Hell, as long as he's away from me, I don't care." She had to laugh when Lu Bu sat up and threw Cal into Ma Chao's leg.

"What's this now?" The mighty warrior tossed the comb in his hand.

"Liang is getting some long desired attention from his new subordinate." Ying smiled. "Actually I think it's kind of hot. Well, not when it's with my husband and his greasy hair though. But Zhao Yun and Jiang Wei, that would be worth thinking about."

"Or, Yun and Zhou Tai?" Cal bit her lip as Ying's eyes narrowed.

"Wait, why me? Why are you pairing all these guys with me?" Yun asked offended.

"You're the only one without a woman." Ying admitted.

"They don't have women either!" He pointed at the rest of the men around the fire. " Cal doesn't have a guy, and I'm not accusing you of being with her!"

"_That _would be hot." Lu Bu smiled.

"Ah, don't bother trying bud. I've been asking her to be my concubine for years to no avail. Selfish, she is." Tong shifted and winced

"Plus I like men. A lot." Cal got up and walked over to Tong to look at the reason for his discomfort.

"Back to me please!" Yun whined.

"Well, if you want to know." Ying looked around the campfire. "Ok, Wei Yan and Pang Tong have made it very clear they like us, so they're out. Zhong is old, and that's just not cool when you're talking Yaoi. Then there's Lu Bu who has made his way through Shang's bodyguards like a rabbit…"

"And he's a foot long so I doubt any guy would be able to accommodate that in any orifice." Cal rubbed Tong's shoulder.

"Really?" Ying asked curiously.

"Yeah." Lu Bu smirked proudly.

"Whoa….I don't even know where you'd put that…."

"BACK TO ME! WHY ME?"

"Ok, Lu Bu's out. Uh Ma Chao, well he's just too masculine and I suspect Cal would kill me if I tried to think about her favorite man like that. And then there's you. Long hair, long eyelashes…longing look." Ying leaned away as he threw a meat bun.

"Ok no, I am not about to be with a guy! So stop your naughty little dreams Ying!" Yun crossed his arms and sat down.

"Hissy fit, just like Liang." Cal added.

"SHUT UP!"

"Touch a nerve did they?" Lu Bu asked and watched him stomp off.

"Shame on you Ying, you knew he was homophobic." Tong patted her head.

"Ah, he's just such an easy target."

"Hey, Pang Tong, I was just wondering what you were whining about on that slope. Some kind of crack against pole arms?" Ma Chao finally remembered what he had been meaning to ask.

"Oh, a running joke we've got here. Take a look around kid." Tong smiled.

"Liu Bei and I are the only ones with swords. " Cal explained. "Shang's got her Chakrams, but that's about it."

"We don't count war fans as weapons in case you were wondering." Ying snuck in her jibe at her husband.

-------------------

"HEY!" Fei stormed toward Guan Yu's tent and figured he'd wake his pal up before he had the chance to bust in. It decreased the chance of him getting run through with a spear

"What Fei? It's not even dawn yet?" Yu rubbed his eyes.

"There's no more wine!"

"So?"

"I say we take this stupid province, the hell with the others. No one of any importance is here. Scouts say Han Xuan is dead, killed by Wei Yan weeks ago. And Wei Yan and Huang Zhong took off, probably to meet up with Liu Bei. So that leaves three castles, three inept commanders and three sources for booze."

Guan Yu sat up in bed. Oddly the proposition kind of made sense. "Fine, we'll move in the morning."

"Great!"

"Now I remember why we keep him intoxicated." Yu went back to sleep only to wake up three hours later.

"HEY!"

"Son of a bitch."

------------------

Morning came and Cal went to the stables, she had such amazing dreams about Ma Chao last night she couldn't believe her imagination was really that vivid. She stretched happily and figured she'd groom her horse and give Red Hare some attention as well. The big blood bay was very fond of her and she didn't mind giving him some time. Ares was very focused on Lotus and Cal found it difficult to deal with the foolish boy. She quickly finished grooming him and left to try her hand at Red Hare. The big stallion nickered as she came over; his view of the white mare was blocked by a partition.

"He is quite an incredible horse, isn't he?" Ma Chao asked as he walked into the stable. He took his helmet off and sat it on a bale of straw and leaned his spear against a pole.

Cal was scratching Red Hares whithers, an act very appreciated by the stallion. She moved over to the stall door to be closer to Chao. Hare nudged her, begging her not to stop. She began to scratch his cheekbones. "Yes, although the big bad Red Hare is nothing but a baby once you give him the right attention. Isn't that right _Ruber Grandis_? (l. Big Red)." "

Chao ran his hand over the horse's head and scratched under his strong jaw. "I'd love to breed Lotus to him, but that will have to wait I'm afraid."

Cal bit her lip. He was just perfect and now her beloved Ma Chao was so close. That slim but strong jaw and his flawless lips that begged to be kissed by a woman who could appreciate them. Even his nose was defectless, such a rarity, fitting his handsome face so well. Then she looked into his captivating brown eyes and she lost herself in them. When she caught his concerned look she blushed and looked back at Red Hare who gave her a knowing sigh. "Chao, can I tell you something?"

"Of course." He smiled, enhancing his charm.

She took a deep breath and focused on his chest, his well muscled broad chest, and looked back into his eyes. "I have to tell you…" she suddenly felt flushed, this was proving to be more difficult than slicing a man's throat open.

He took her hand and squeezed it, "What's wrong Cal, I've never seen you like this. Please tell me."

She looked into his face. "I'm in love with you." She saw his surprise then felt her hand drop as he let go of it. Hare snorted and wiped his nose on her breasts, again.

"Oh….well….thanks." he blubbered

"Thanks?" She asked. _Oh shit._

"Well, uh, yeah. I'm glad you like me so much." He suddenly wanted the entire Wei army to attack this tiny little stable. "Well it's not that I don't appreciate your affections but…"

"I know, I'm not your type. I'm ugly and foreign." She let her shoulders fall, and the stallion began to groom her hair.

"No that's not it. I really think you're a great girl. You're very pretty and I have a great deal of respect for you as a warrior, but uhhh I'm a Lord of a large amount of territory and really there's not much chance for us."

"What are you talking about?"

"Well you're foreign after all and you're just a warrior. There really isn't much reason to marry unless there's a dowry or even diplomacy involved."

"Oh."

"But I'm sure you'd make a great concubine." He said it before he had a chance to think it through.

"Oh. So I'm good enough to be a sex slave am I?"

"I'm sorry, but that's just the way things are here."

"No I'm sorry, I didn't realize how unworthy I am of anyone." With that she ducked under him and left.

-------------

Zhang Fei snorted as he saw the small section of resistance in front of him. _Piece of cake! Mmmmm…..cake _"Hey who's in charge here?"

"I, Liu Du, am the commander of this fortress and we will not yield to the oppressive forces of Liu Bei!" Liu Du readied himself for the attack.

"Oh shut it." Fei galloped through the men that Liu Du had with him and attacked. The man fell to one swipe of his spear.

"We surrender!" The small sub-general shouted before he was cut down.

"Ok, this castle belongs to Liu Bei now, got it?"

"Yes, sir."

"Bring any supplies you have to the big castle, ok? The one at the mouth of the river. MOVE!"

"Yes sir!"

----------------

"Gentlemen, I need to ask you all a very important question regarding your culture." Cal leaned against the corner of the table. The small group of officers: Lui Bei, Lu Bu, Pang Tong and Zhao Yun were all waiting for her to continue. The had been discussing the march to Jing, but it wasn't going all that well. "Did any of you realize that it would be completely insane for me to marry anyone of stature in this camp, or in fact in all of China?"

"Well yeah." Yun shrugged, "You knew that too."

"If I did would I have just made a complete ass out of myself by telling Ma Chao I'm in love with him?"

"Oh." Yun said then fell into silence.

"So none of you thought it might be important to tell me this? Or what about this concubine shit?"

"That is always a possibility." Lu Bu agreed. "But not for you, I can't see you liking that setup much."

"No, no it isn't. I'm not going to voluntarily become someone's slave." Cal closed her eyes. "What a fool I am."

"It's not your fault…" Lui Bei began to say as she ran out of the tent.

--------------------

Guan Yu looked around and rubbed his eyes. He didn't bother to bring a large force with him; he doubted these pitiful little generals would last long.  
"Open the gates, or else I'm torching this fort."

"Open the gates." Zhao Fan shook his head, "I won't fight a war I cannot win. Liu Bei is too strong."

"So you're surrendering?"

"Yes, and I'm opening the gates." Fan let his shoulders slump and helped his men swing the gate open for the Shu forces.

"Ok." Yu looked back at his bodyguard who shrugged.

"Must be your reputation, sir?"

------------------

"Wait." Lu Bu strode after her and grabbed her arm. "You really threw yourself at Ma Chao like that?"

"What do you think?" she tried to pull away from him, but his grip was firm.

"I think you're afraid of being alone, is what I think. Not to mention young and stupid."

"Well you're just a great help." She turned to leave again

"Actually I am." He smiled "Marry me instead."

"What?"

"You heard me. You said it before, we're the same monster. No one's going to take you anyhow, not anyone you want. . I'm without power or land right now, so I'm not interested in any of my prospects at the moment. "

Cal stopped pulling and looked him in the eye. "So I get the greatest warrior in China, what do you get?"

"An ally. I need someone who can help me get the power I want. You are an assassin, with an incredible amount of knowledge of both Wei and Shu. You've got ambition too, or else you wouldn't have trained so hard when I pissed you off before Bo Wan Po. You aren't afraid to stand up to me, something valuable in an officer. Besides you're not so bad in bed either."

"I'm not convinced."

"You are an acquisition. You have skills that would be very valuable in my campaigns. I am the only one who truly understands what you are, despite what you're trying to be. Besides I've put considerable time into training you to be what I want." Quietly he added, "I tried to have what I could not have once too. In my drive to prove myself worthy of her, I never once saw that she did not want me. I know the humiliation that you feel right now."

"So I am vulnerable and you think I will fold? I won't betray Liu Bei."

"Not now at least. I have no intention of doing anything but using you to get what I want. Once that is accomplished I will more then likely kill you and use my newly acquired wealth and stature to secure myself a better wife." Lu Bu cocked his head to the side, she was thinking on it. "Besides, I'm not terribly fond of being alone either."

"Well, I could always kill you after you accumulate your land and power. Then I would be the hero for slaying Lu Bu, take your army to Lui Bei and use your former property to make myself worthy of Ma Chao."

"Sounds like a solid plan. I'm really your only choice anyhow. Especially after your little interrogation session. I do believe even Guan Yu was disgusted by that, and he eats snails."

"Fine, you have yourself a deal. But I will remain loyal to Liu Bei and I will kill you if you turn on him."

"Maybe I'll get lucky and you'll learn how to shut up and take orders." He pulled her into him and kissed her. He felt the stares on his back and broke off the kiss to see Lui Bei and Zhao Yun standing at the tent flaps. "Oh just the man I wanted to see. I'm marrying your little warrior here; perhaps you'd be so kind to do the ceremony for us. Since you are the only one she really listens to anyhow."

Cal growled at Lu Bu for the sudden addition of Lui Bei into the evil contract. She turned to see both Shu officers with their mouths hanging open. "I'm going to enjoy your death more than all of the others." She smiled looking up at her now future husband.

"Not if I kill you first." Then with an afterthought he added, "Darling."

"We do deserve each other." She pulled away from him and smirked, "I'm going to go make a new garrote. I'd hate to have to slice that handsome neck with something so common as a belt."

----------------------

"Who are you?" Fei asked as the jittery man approached.

"Jin Xuan, I am commander here."

"Well, I'm Zhang Fei. I'm taking this castle for Liu Bei and your wine for myself. Do you have a problem with that?"

"Not really, I wasn't really expecting to do very much of anything now that Han Xuan is dead." Jin Xuan answered honestly.

"Well alright then. Take your supplies and take 'em to that town up there. Castle, fort whatever the main place is."

"Sure. You will accept the surrender of my men then. And release them back to their families?"

"I'll let Liu Bei deal with that. Me, I just want to be drunk when he gets here."

"Fine, I'll tell my men to lay down their arms and assist you." Xuan turned and trotted back to his fort.

------------------------

"Are you crazy?!?" Shang came running over to Cal and kept screaming. "Have you lost your mind?"

"No." Cal answered. "I know exactly what I'm doing."

"And what is that?" Ying asked casually.

"I'm marrying the greatest warrior in the land, that's what. Rather fortunate for someone so pitiful as me, huh?"

"No No No!" Shang begged.

"What would he want with you anyway?" Ying asked then smiled apologetically, "No offense."

"Why should I be offended? No, this will be a good move."

"Why? He's only trying to use you!" Shang whined

"Yes, he's trying to use me. However I will not be used. He will try and get me to turn from Lui Bei, help him kill and maim his way to power, but I will not let him manipulate me. I will keep him close so that he will not betray our lord." Cal crossed her arms and waited.

"But what if he kills you?" Ying asked

"He hasn't so far, which leads me to believe he thinks I have a greater use. Fear not, I will have spilled his blood long before he seeks to replace me with a real wife. For some reason the harder I run from my past the quicker it catches up with me."

"Cal?" Ma Chao asked meekly, "Can we talk?"

"Chao, I believe we've done enough talking today. Don't you?"

"But, I didn't mean to hurt you and drive you to do this. Please, we can work something out."

"Like what?"

"There's someone out there for you. Just not…"Chao got the threatening looks from the other two women.

"Anyone I want. Yes I know. Well, I'm not doing too bad for myself. He's got a great body, good looks, strong as hell and he wants to rule the world. Now how can I go wrong with that?"

"He's a bad man." Shang said pouting

"I'm a very bad woman. We're two of a kind. Chao, I'm sorry I should have realized sooner. I'm not worthy of you anyway. Maybe in another lifetime, if I'm lucky." She kissed him on the forehead.

"Come, now." Zhao Yun appeared and ducked his shoulder into her stomach and lifted her up over his shoulder with minimal effort. He carried her off to somewhere private.

------------------------

"Is this really it?" Guan Yu looked down at Zhao Fan.

"Well Xing Daorong is lurking about in the mountains. He's one of those paranoid guys who always wants to ambush people." Fan shrugged. "He may come, I don't know how dedicated he is now that General Han is dead."

"What exactly happened with the general?"

"He got into an argument with the old man, Huang Zhong. Zhong said it might not be bad to welcome Liu Bei since he was trying to restore the Han and all. But the General got pissed saying that Liu Bei was only after a kingdom for himself, and accused Zhong of being a traitor. So he tried to execute the old archer, but Wei Yan cut him down before he could. Yan always felt the general was only in it for himself, and now that an army was marching on Jing….well it was obvious he wasn't concerned about the people or soldiers."

"But you're still here, defending these castles." Yu pointed out.

"We weren't sure who would come.. For all we knew, Cao Cao might strike at us. So we opted to stay on guard, to protect our families."

"Everyone felt this way, about surrendering to Liu Bei?"

"No, but I'm sure your friend has already eliminated Liu Du and Xing Daorong has yet to show himself. He will attack your rear, I guarantee that."

"Well that is where I will head. You should round up your men and head up north."

"Thank you sir." Zhao Fan bowed and relayed the message.

------------------

"What?" Liang fumbled with the sheets trying to hide Jiang Wei.

"Oh for god's sake Kongming, I don't care who you have in your bed. But you need to get dressed and get back to work, Lu Bu's trying to marry Cal."

"Huh?" Liang's eyes got wide. "No."

"Yeah, so get out of bed, we need you!" Ying turned and left.

--------------------

"What is this about?" Yun dropped her next to a tree.

"I don't want to be alone, Yun. I want to have a family, to have a real life."

"With him?"

"He's all I can have."

"Shit if that's all you're after, why not Tong or Yan or even me?"

She shook her head, "He's my kind. Besides Tong is happy with bachelorhood, Wei Yan in just odd although sweet, and you…well that's just incestual. Besides you're all too good for me."

"If you marry him, everything you've done to move on will be for nothing. You once were like him, but…."

"I still want to kill, Yun. I try to forget that, but the feeling is still there."

"Which is why you need someone good."

"Like Ma Chao?" she asked bitterly.

--------------------

"Attack!" Xing Daorang charged the Shu rear guard without noticing that there was a large bearded man in green standing in the road.

"Uh, sir?" his subordinate shouted, but it was too late. The obnoxious Daorong was already dead. "Alright boys, you ready to go home?"

-------------------

"Lu Bu what is this about?" Zhuge Liang tossed his hair over his shoulder and fanned himself.

"Look at it as an offer of your good will."

"Our good will is not in question." Liu Bei folded his arms

"I will ally with you officially for a price. You do not have any land I want, no daughters to marry, no horses to give…nothing really. But fortunately for you, one of your loyal officers is willing to offer herself."

"Why? You have been a guest general for years without it bothering you, why do you suddenly want to swear alliance to our lord." Liang narrowed his eyes.

"The world has changed and I have been unable to find enough support for an army of my own. This is the best I can do, but I want something of yours to solidify the bargain. You know just like your alliance with Wu." Lu Bu cracked a smile as Liu Bei growled.

"What do you want with her though? She is beneath you after all." Liang asked curiously.

"Would you not fear our offspring?" Lu Bu smiled.

----------------------

"I'm sorry, you said what?" Ma Dai looked at his cousin incredulously.

"I thought she knew."

"Of course she didn't you idiot! Poor thing has been in love with you since the very first time she laid eyes on you! You knew that!" Dai smacked him on the back of the head.

"What was I supposed to do?"

"Oh I don't know, not tell her she was a piece of shit for starters."

----------------------

"Look Yun, you know I don't like to feel vulnerable. And at Tong Gate……I was the weakest I had ever been and I almost got killed for it. I saw Cao Cao and I was afraid because I knew I couldn't handle him if I got pinned down. Then there was Chao. I got my damned head so cluttered with this love bullshit that I couldn't remember my mission. I almost fucked up everything because I was too busy drooling or stuttering or just making an ass out of myself. I never felt this emotion before then and I never want to again. I was incapable of doing my duty because I was emotional. I lucked out, but I'll be damned if I'm going to take that chance again."

"Cal, you can't say that. Especially now, knowing what Shang and Bei have or Ying and Tai. You see what it is like for them, how can you not want that?"

"It's because of them that I wanted it, but I'm not meant to have that. Yun, you understand me so well but there is just so much about me that you can never get. When I was raised into the legions, emotional attachment was looked upon as evil. Friendships and love interests weakened resolve, thus the soldier was rendered useless. They drummed it into our heads that we were tools of war, nothing more."

"But you're not with them anymore Cal, you're with us."

"And that's part of the problem. I've been allowed to be free and relaxed and I forgot that I'm not really one of you. I've been the outsider all my life. I was always on my own in the barracks back in Rome. I was reminded ever so nicely by Cao Cao that I needed to stay in line and that I was 'lucky' he was so tolerant of my differences. But here, you all let me forget that….even though I knew that I wasn't ever going to have a chance at a Lord of anything. I'm common rabble, I knew that. I let my judgment be clouded and it won't happen again. Lu Bu is doing me a big favor, he's much better then me as far as status goes. If he wants something, well he's going to get one hell of a fight if I don't approve."

Yun sighed, "But there are so many others you could give a chance. There are a lot of good men here now."

"Zilong, I don't want to feel like that again. So I'm marrying someone who I can assure myself I'll never be attached to like that. I like Lu Bu, he's a good fighter and he can be friendly when he wants to be. I can get along with him without making a lot of compromises. He is my best bet."

"So what, you're ready to retire. Just because some guy broke your heart?"

"Did I say anything about that? I'm just taking the chance I have while it's available. Years down the line if he's still alive, well maybe I'll think about it. We're still at war, I still have a job and I am still loyal to Liu Bei and Liu Bei alone. I'm just eliminating my distractions."

--------------------------

Lui Bei cleared his throat. They had both insisted that the ceremony be done immediately, and that didn't help matters any. He looked at the pair in front of him and tried to smile. Lu Bu was as menacing as ever. He had his bodyguards shine his armor until it shone brighter than the noon sun. He wore a new shirt and pants made from the finest silk that he could find. Shang's bodyguards couldn't stop sighing over him and giggling shamelessly. He was definitely a striking picture and he knew it; Lu Bu was a man who enjoyed attention. To his right stood a calm and collected young roman warrior. Cal was stunning, though. She had made sure Shang helped her find the best looking and most revealing dress she could get, and Shang came through for her again. The long green dress was ravishing and very form fitting. Its low neckline helped show off her cleavage and the short sleeves allowed her toned muscles to hint at her prowess as a warrior. The long dress flowed over her hips and the slits down each side showed off her muscular, but shapely legs. Shang also managed to put her hair up in a lovely twist so that she could look a touch more oriental.

Lui Bei tried to continue. "General Lu Bu and Lady Quirinus, as Emperor of Shu, I proclaim you man and wife." He sighed, the dirty deed was done.

Lu Bu pulled her into him for a kiss, after the embrace she asked. "How does it feel to marry someone so far beneath you all because you can't win over the right people?"

"Now darling, you should save that kind of talk for our wedding bed." He kissed her again viciously. "I promise I'll show you how it feels."

-----------------------------

"Oh I'm going to be ill." Lui Bei sat with his head in his hands as Shang approached.

"Bei, she'll be fine." Shang wrapped her arms around her guilty husband. "If anyone can force Lu Bu to retreat, it will be Cal."

"This is very very bad. I can't believe you let this happen." Zhuge Liang huffed and fanned himself. "You just gave him a weapon."

"Thanks for the gloomy outlook Liang." Bei sat up straight and looked over at the happy couple.

"They do make a striking pair though." Ying said, ignoring Liang's dagger stares. "They both have that hungry look about them."

"Very Very bad! We now have this bomb in our camp to deal with. Exile them both now before it's too late." Liang demanded.

"Hey, don't tell him what to do." Shang defended her man.

"That would be my job." He reminded her.

"Poor Ma Chao." Ying said sympathetically. "He's blaming himself for this."

"Good. He is to blame for this. How difficult was it to just make love to her in the hay and walk away?" Liang snapped.

"He's a good man, you wouldn't understand." Shang answered and hugged Lui Bei. "Just like mine."

"And what would you know about making love to a woman anyway?" Ying shot back.

-------------------------

"Let's go." Cal tugged on her new husband's shirt.

"Why, not enjoying your reception?" He watched her look away.

"I'm not overly upset by this arrangement."

"Neither am I." He allowed himself to put his arm around her. "I'll protect you from Cao Cao, you know that."

"I don't need or want your protection."

"Wrong on both accounts, _darling_."

"What exactly is it that you want from me?"

"You are my devil's advocate."

She thought about it then started to pull him towards the door. "Come on, let's go screw."

"Now that's exactly what I always imagined my bride saying in regards to our wedding night."

"Well I'm no Diao Chan, deal with it."

-----------------------------

While Cal was changing out of her dress in the bedchamber, Lu Bu wandered over to the small table in the corner of the main room. She had the servant bring in a pot of hot water, for tea. She hated tea. That meant that whatever birth control concoction Pang Tong had mixed up for her was in the form of the caffeinated concoction. He sniffed at the tea leaves, kind of minty. Quickly he tossed it into the fire and replaced it with the mint tea he took from the kitchen. He was going to be getting something good out of this arrangement, even if she wasn't interested in bearing his child. He smiled the thought of having an heir….an heir to his kingdom that he would create. All thanks to the stubborn little assassin he snagged from Liu Bei. Funny how she would be his downfall, as protective as she was of him. He sat down and waited for her to come out of the bedroom, and he was shocked when she did.

Cal strolled out of the bedroom wearing very little. She figured as long as it was her wedding night, she might as well do it right. She had one of Shang's bodyguards make her a slinky little silk nightdress and from the look in Lu Bu's eye, it worked. She poured herself a cup of tea; at least she was going to keep him in check one way. "Like it?"

"Yeah."

"Do you have something else I can call you, other than Bu?"

"Fengxian."

"Much better." She swallowed the tea and smiled. "Maybe I should have had them bring wine."

"You won't need it." He ran his hand up her thigh. "Oh and I thought I should let you know. I officially with Shu now, you're my gift."

"Shit, you really got screwed on this one. At least you got a well bred horse and a beautiful woman out of the last two allegiances. Now you get an ugly mutt, and they expect you to stay loyal?"

"Cal, you're really not that bad to look at….despite what Ma Chao says." He thought the last addition was brilliant. Nothing like securing her loyalty with a jibe at the man that tore out her heart. "I actually enjoy looking at you a lot, especially when you're wearing that."

Cal felt him slip his hand under her nightgown and hungrily grope her. Did Ma Chao really say that? Did it matter anymore? "Let's go to the bedroom and I'll show you what I'm really capable of."

"Honey, I've already seen quiet a bit from you…"

"No you saw my bid to take control of a situation in order to manipulate my way out of it. I had fun, don't get me wrong. But I didn't really give you my best effort. Come along, Fengxian" She pulled away from him and sauntered in to the bedroom.


	23. Preparing to take Cheng Du

Thanks for all the reviews. I felt horrible doing that to poor Ma Chao, but I can't help but love him when he's angry. (Something about a guy that chases Cao Cao killing everyone in his way and chopping off people's hands just makes me swoon.) So I couldn't make everything work out so soon. There has to be angst accompanying the romance in this fanfiction world of ours. So have faith, I can't make my favorite general unhappy for very long. I've already been so very cruel to my OC so a few more chapters won't really kill her….it only makes the outcome so much better. Or so I hope. Tell me what you guys think, the feedback makes me feel special.

Chapter 23

"I can't believe you two are married." Ying looked at Lu Bu and Cal.

"You're not the only one." Yun sat down next to Ying.

Cal shrugged. "It's no different then the 'partnership' you have with Liang."

"Yeah." Lu Bu yawned and put his arm around his new wife. "Hell I don't care if she screws Ma Chao on the side either. I'm just not going to hop in bed with Yun over there. Sorry, you're pretty and all, but I don't swing that way."

"Neither do I." Yun growled, the yoai shit was getting on his nerves.

Cal looked down at Lu Bu, "You're awful happy and content though."

"I had a good night." He smiled.

"There's something more…..like you got away with something." Cal looked him over

"Just amused everyone's so pissed at me."

Cal shrugged it off, whatever it was it probably wasn't that important.

"I'm going to see what's holding up the march." Lu Bu stood and stretched.

"I'm going to go for a ride." Cal got up and left.

"I hate this." Ying looked over at Yun.

"Me too."

-----------------

"Hey." Ma Chao walked over to Ares stall with sad eyes.

"You look like a lost puppy." Cal smirked.

"I can't apologize enough for what I said…..I'm an idiot."

"You were right." She patted his hand but stopped when he grabbed it.

"No I wasn't. You were being honest and I…….I don't know." Chao turned his head away and continued. "I don't know what to do anymore. I wasn't prepared for this, I had two older brothers. I was never supposed to have this responsibility…"

Cal rubbed his face compassionately. She felt for him, he was just trying to do what was right for the people that he looked over. "I'm not mad."

"You should be. I don't think I'm up to this." He leaned into her hand.

"Of course you are! Chao for god's sake, you're only twenty-one and you are in charge of a chunk of land larger than Liu Bei has. Look at me, "She pulled his chin up to see his eyes, tired and confused. "You're a great man. You are a phenomenal fighter and a virtuous individual. Don't be so quick to give up on yourself."

"Then why did I do that to you?"

"Honestly, that was probably the only response that would have gotten my attention."

"You've been very supportive of me and a good friend. I don't really have anyone but you and Dai. Everyone else is dead or missing a hand. I let you down."

"You're letting me down now! Chao, come on. What do you mean you have no one? Dai is always by your side and you seemed to hit it off well with Lu Bu."

"Lu Bu is fine to fight with, but when it comes down to conversation….er no. He must think I'm the village idiot. Every other sentence is intended to manipulate me into joining his army, that he doesn't have."

"That's Lu Bu for you. What about Dai?"

"Dai has smacked me on the back side of the head enough in the last three days to make me think I have brain damage."

"You have friends here now." Cal ran her hands through his hair. How odd that she could finally touch him now that she was another man's wife. "They're all good people; you need to give them a chance. They've been so good to me. That's why I married Lu Bu, to pay them back."

Chao looked up at her and she smiled, causing him to smile. "Why? They didn't want you to."

"They'll need him. Our army is so much smaller than the others and we have fewer officers. At least he'll help equal things out. But if he went to join someone else…..that would mean our demise. I saved him; hence it's my fault he's still lurking around. I want to make sure he helps us. It's what I do best. I'm not a general or a warrior. This is my talent and I want to use it to help my friends."

"Cal, if my family wasn't killed and I wasn't in this position…..I would have never said what I did. Perhaps…"

Cal put he finger to his lips, she didn't want to hear it. "What's done is done. However I do like this idea of blaming Cao Cao for this whole thing. I'll kill him for you, how's that?"

"You're mocking me."

"Yes I am, but you're smiling again."

"You move quick don't you?" Lu Bui stood at the stable entrance looking at the two individuals. They both looked like they had been thinking dirty thoughts. "I thought you'd at least have the decency to wait awhile before pursuing your lover."

"General, we were just talking. Nothing more." Ma Chao stood up straight.

"Sure. You forget I know my _wife_ better than you."

"Do you want something?" Cal growled.

"Just checking on you, sweetheart. I was concerned."

"Yeah, I buy that."

"You weren't complaining last night." He snorted and turned back to the door. "Come on, they've made a decision."

"Asshole." She snapped.

"I'm beginning to see why Cao Cao thought he needed to resort to beating you." Lu Bu strode out of the stable. Let her have her fun, soon she wouldn't be doing much of anything.

"Chao, I'll always love you. But if I can't have you in that way….I don't care. I don't want to loose you. If I promise to keep my flirtations in check, can we still be friends?"

"Of course." He grinned, "But I won't object if a beautiful lady hits on me every now and then."

She narrowed her eyes at him, "So you want me to ask the other girls to harass you?"

He shook his head, "Actually I was referring to you."

She saw his face, it was genuine. Maybe Lu Bu made that shit up. Wouldn't put it past him. She hoped she wasn't just going to torture herself with him. "Promise me one thing."

"Anything."

"Don't let your rage consume you, like it did me. I couldn't bear the thought of you turning into…us."

--------------------

"We are moving to Jing, where Guan Yu and Zhang Fei will be waiting for us. We will attack the castles one by one…" Zhuge Laing smiled as the annoyed Pang Tong slammed his staff into the table.

"That is not the plan you fan-toting fairy!" Tong hollered.

"It is the strategy I have devised, thus it is the one we will use!"

"This is a campaign initialed by me, ergo I will be the one who determines what strategies we use to capture said province!"

"Don't wave your staff at me you little shrimp!" Liang screamed back.

"Gentlemen." Liu Bei cautioned as the Shu officers stared at the two strategists with interest.

"Shrimp? Why don't you bring that smug little grin of yours over here and I'll pound it off!"

"ENOUGH!" Ying slammed the map down on the table. "We're marching to Jing, now. We've been set back by all this fucking bullshit and we need to be moving immediately. Here. Ma Chao and Zhao Yun will take the lead with the cavalry and head to Jing. Liu Bei, Shang, Kongming and Jiang Wei will go with the boys to Jing. Huang Zhong, you take their archer unit. Lu Bu and Cal will move towards Cheng Du. Tong you and I are behind them, with Wei Yan in command of the archer unit. All good? Yes. Go." Ying turned and stormed out of the tent.

"Someone is missing Tai, a bit too much." Cal whispered to Shang.

"Yeah, I'll say." Shang leaned in closer, "I think it's also a bad time of the month."

"Fabulous, and she's with me."

--------------------

"Pack the tent." Lu Bu threw some clothes at his wife and worked his way over to his desk.

"Fuck you."

"I'm sorry. Did they not clarify that custom for you, either? A wife obeys her husband, so snap to it."

"Like hell I will." Cal threw the clothes back at him. She turned to leave but he pulled her back and slapped her. She hit the ground with the force of the hit.

"As I was saying…ughhhhh" Lu Bu coughed as Cal head butted him in the balls. He hit the ground next to her only to have her fist slam into his eye.

"As_ I_ was saying…" She stood and kicked him in the ribs. "I will not take this shit from you. It was a nice try but you knew it wasn't going to work. The sooner you come to terms with the fact that this is nothing more than a business transaction the easier it will be. Don't fuck with me boy, I lived through too much to take any shit from you." She walked out of the tent swirling some blood in her mouth.

Liu Bei was standing outside, he was hoping to pass along some orders but then he heard the confrontation. He saw Cal emerge with a bloody lip and spit some blood out on the grass.

"Hello, sir. How are you this morning?"

"Uh…"

"He might have to stay behind on the march. I don't think he'll be up to riding this morning. Can I deliver those orders for you?" She smiled.

"By god, you are either insane or fearless."

"I prefer to think I'm just irritable." She smiled.

----------------

"I'm sorry, I know you blame me for what happened." Ma Chao rode Lotus to the front lines where Zhao Yun was waiting.

"Actually I do."

"I realize what a mistake I made."

"Really." Yun trotted off. "Too little too late."

-----------------

The march to Jing was quiet. Zhao Yun refused to speak to Ma Chao, which made things uneasy. Ma Dai chose to speak his mind however. "Sometimes I really think your mother dropped you on your head as a baby."

"Thanks Dai."

"We haven't even been here that long and already ninety percent of the army hates you! Good god Chao, you're communication skills are unparalleled."

"Dai, shove it." Chao had had nothing but time to think and he was feeling exceptionally bad right now. He had come to terms with the fact that he liked the Roman girl about ten miles back. However another ten miles had given him a chance to think about how much he enjoyed her touch and concern. Then there was the fact that she was outspoken and crazy….and he had thrown her away.

"What? Finally feeling guilty?"

Chao pulled Lotus to a halt. "You really want to know? I feel awful, not because I treated her worse than Cao Cao did, but because I've suddenly realized I have the same feelings for her! How do you think I feel, you bastard?"

"You what?" Dai was stunned.

"You what?" Zhao Yun suddenly came over.

"You heard me." Chao shook his head. "I was so wrapped up in what I had to do for my people that I didn't realize that she was exactly what I needed to be a better leader. Not to mention she's the most unique woman I've ever met and she loves me. And by god, I love her."

"Well then go take her away from Lu Bu!" Yun punched him in the arm. "She doesn't care for him and I suspect she's only doing this so that we can have him with us. The hell with that, just kill the bastard, you are capable of it."

"Will you tell her?" Dai looked at Chao curiously.

"She's married now…I have to respect that."

"Bullshit. Lu Bu doesn't respect it, and I doubt Cal does. Why should you?" Yun asked suddenly excited for his friend. "Chao if you do care for her, rescue her from him! He's trying to use her and I don't know how."

"She's been married a day and we're already trying to undermine it." Dai smiled. "Fantastic!"

----------------------

"So the husband's not joining you today?" Tong asked with a look around.

"He's found out how low my tolerances are." She smiled.

"Shesh, you really are a hard one to live with. I'm kind of glad we never hit it off like that. I couldn't imagine a night without the love of my ladies."

"Try to imagine what it will be like once you do rejoin the army with your bruised testicles and penis….only to have your wife give you a lapdance." Call laughed.

"You are evil." Tong chuckled. "But that will be awesome!"

------------------------

"Where is everyone?" Liu Bei advanced cautiously through Ling Ling. Then he heard what sounded like singing….very off key impromptu singing. _Zhang Fei! _He galloped off to the north.

"What is that drunken idiot doing on the castle wall!" Zhuge Liang trotted along with Jiang Wei at his side.

"Looks like celebrating." Wei replied.

"Wei, I don't know how much more I can take of this unprofessional nonsense."

"Sir?" Wei looked around and noted that no one was close to them. "Kongming, what are you saying?"

"You are loyal to _me_, right?" Liang looked to his love.

"Of course, to you alone Master Zhuge." He smiled as he thought about last night and what that term really meant to both of them.

"There may come a time when Liu Bei is no longer fit to rule…."

"Then we must do what is right for Shu." Wei finished and smirked.

"Yes, for Shu." He reached out and touched Wei's hand.

----------------

Lu Bu sat on the ground looking at the roof of his tent. The army had taken off leaving him and his bodyguards behind. The throbbing pain in his groin had subsided and he was able to think clearly again. He should have seen that coming, he knew he was pushing her to her breaking point. Time for a change of tactics. He would have to be nice to her and try to win her over that way. She was obviously looking for a man or else she wouldn't have thrown herself at Ma Chao like that. Certainly she would change her attitude once he was the father of her child. That would be the only way she would be dedicated to him, she knew very well that a half-breed kid had no chance in this world unless he was from an exceptional family. Well, luck would have it that they both possessed the ability to carve a kingdom out of the chaos. Lu Bu sighed, he wasn't a patient man and this ridiculous plan required a lot of patience. Why the hell did Diao Chan have to leave? She'd be worth the effort.

-------------------

"What the hell are you doing?" Yun screamed as he reached the castle.

"Drinkin'!" Fei answered

"Why so pissed Zilong?" Guan Yu asked dipping his mug into the barrel Fei had. "Jealous we've been having such a good time while you've been marching along the dusty roads?"

"Actually we've had a crisis to deal with thanks." Yun growled as Ma Chao rode up.

"Did you tell them?" Chao asked curiously.

"What crisis? Liang get hemorrhoids or something?" Fei snorted and choked on some wine.

"Or maybe they heard him getting spanked. That might be traumatizing." Yu giggled uncharacteristically.

"Oh! Jiang Wei hit me…harder! Oh baby, Yes!" Fei screeched.

Yu laughed heartily. "Oh Master Zhuge, did I hurt you? Here let me put it in my mouth and make it all better!"

"Oh Oh Wei! Attack….Forward…no no retreat….ah yes…no forward….now retreat!" Fei fell over and cried with laughter.

"Actually, Cal and Lu Bu got married." Yun huffed.

Fei and Yu both sat up and spit out their wine. The spray rained down on Liu Bei who rode up. He looked up in annoyance at his two sworn brothers. "You had both better have a good explanation for all of this."

---------------------

"Ying, what's wrong?" Cal asked not really wanting to know the answer.

"I miss Tai." She answered and started to cry.

"Look, once we take Chang Du….we can figure out a way to get you to Jian Ye. I promise."

"I knew it was going to be hard, but this is torture. Life is hell right now."

"At least it's only a few years. Try imagining your whole existence being a nightmare." Cal scratched Ares neck and looked over her shoulder to see Lu Bu ride up. "Speaking of…"

"Look, I'm sorry. I was just jealous since you couldn't wait to get in Ma Chao's pants." Lu Bu tried to give her his best sorry look. He really didn't have one.

"Ok." Cal was not impressed with the pathetic excuse.

"You were right, we're partners. I treated you with a great deal of disrespect and I'll be damned if I'm going to be like Kongming."

"Are you checking out Wei Yan's ass?" Ying asked.

"No." He looked over at the woman, what a stupid question. _Oh shit, she's menopausal._

"Then you're not Liang yet."

"Well if you want we can make our way into those bushes over there and I'll make it up to you." Cal smiled wickedly.

"Uh…no thanks. I think I'll see how Pang Tong's shoulder is feeling." He trotted off.

"You're evil." Ying smiled. "I'd nail Liang in the balls, but I don't know if it would bother him. If nothing works, then maybe you just don't feel anything at all."

"Let's ask Wei Yan!" Cal smiled. "Oh hey Wild Man!"

"Yes…Angels?"

"Honey, do you think if I kicked Liang in the nuts he would feel anything?"

"Try…please." Wei Yan cracked a smile.

--------------------

"So why did you agree to his terms again?" Guan Yu looked at Bei.

"He offered to ally with us and I knew she was going to go ahead with it anyway. She's trying to help us." Bei sat down and took the mug of ale.

"And what brought all this up?" Yu looked at Yun.

Yun looked to Chao, "All you man."

"She told me she loved me and I treated her like shit."

"I've heard enough of this; I'm going to get some consoling from my wife." Liu Bei got up and left.

"Why?" Yu began to turn red.

"Because I'm an idiot." Chao shook his head. "Kill me if you'd like but I've already realized I've made the biggest mistake of my life."

"Yu, calm down." Yun made sure Liu Bei was gone. "He realized he loves her, so we're going to all conspire against Lu Bu."

"Oh really."

"Yeah, I don't know how but we'll do something about this mess."

"I do love her Guan Yu, I'm just…."

"Easy kid. I believe you." Yu raised his hand. "She's just following orders I rescinded ages ago. So if you're going to do this you can't let her know. She's going to keep him in check, that's what she does."

"Ok….so what do we do? God why did Tong and Ying have to go with them?" Yun took the wine Yu offered.

"I'm going to tell her, when we get to Cheng Du. Then we'll figure out everything from there." Chao nodded.

"What an interesting love triangle." Yu shook his head. "We're behind you son."

----------------------

Two and a half months passed before the Jing invasion force made its way to the Cheng Du vicinity. Pang Tong greeted them on Fluffy and Wei Yan sat on a nearby rock.

"Alas! On yonder horizon do my eyes see…oh two pretty boys. Side by side…well maybe Ying should be here." Tong dodged a flying Fierce Dragon.

"I swear to god, any more Yoai shit from you and I'll run you through!" Yun leapt off Tsunami and grabbed his weapon lodged in the ground.

"Nice to see you too!" Tong giggled.

"Welcome…Home." Wei Yan waved.

"How's Cal?" Chao asked Pang Tong excitedly. He had himself all worked up…tonight was the night.

"He realized he's in love with her…It's a big mess. Anyhow, you boys in?" Yun looked at the two men.

"Anything for my favorite non-committal concubine." Tong grinned.

"Angel….will..be…happy." Wei Yan smiled.

"To answer your question, she's been kind of quiet lately. Ying's been a mess too; she misses Tai a bit too much I suspect. Lu Bu's been trying to ride off to nab Zhang Liao for us and we've all been telling him what a stupid idea it was. As of late our girls have been keeping to themselves, and Wei Yan and I have been too busy babysitting that cocksucker to do anything about it."

Chao and Yun looked at each other. Tong was never that bitter, it must have been a rough two months. Chao smiled, "Tonight it will all change I promise!"

"Oh listen to the whelp! Talking like he's some genius on romancing women." Huang Zhong rode up and rolled his eyes.

"You'd think a guy that's had women fawning over him since he was twelve would be better at it, wouldn't you?" Ma Dai pushed his cousin playfully.

"You'd think a guy I've been beating up since I was five would watch his mouth." Chao pushed his cousin off his horse.

-------------------------

The war council was a welcome relief from the months of separation. Everyone was thrilled to see each other and the evening began with a bang.

Zhuge Liang threw his copy of _The Art of War _across the table and screamed, "I demand that inbred beast be executed!"

"On what grounds?" Liu Bei asked irritated. He was fed up with just about everything. Liang was being ultra-bitch and Shang was making him sleep with his bodyguards due to an argument about children. Jiang Wei was teaching Liu Chan how to wield a spear when he made it very clear that the boy would inherit the Gold Moon Dragon. Then there was Zhang Fei who sang about his genitalia and the other boys who were gossiping about something and not letting him in on it. He arrived to find Lu Bu scheming to go after Zhang Liao and Pang Tong ready to fight Zhuge Liang. Then Liang got pissed about Yan giving him the finger and they got into it. Apparently Kongming had refused his service but somehow Yan had figured out that he would be employed at the main camp by the emperor. Well that was all that the uptight strategist needed to go off on another irritating tirade.

"He was refused by me but ignored my educated decision and came to you instead."

"Oh so now I'm a fool am I?" Liu Bei snapped back.

"Wow, this is great." Ying smiled and rubbed Tong's shoulder.

"Oh baby, stroke me some more!" Tong purred and rubbed his head into her neck.

"Pervert." She smacked his hat.

"I didn't say that! I'm just saying Wei Yan is a man who is only going to cause trouble! He manipulated you!"

"You….asshole….die!" Wei Yan took as swing at Liang but was blocked By Liu Bei's sword.

"Easy. I do not need any of you at odds, especially not now. Behave god dammit! I'm sick of this shit!" He looked at the surprised faces of everyone in the tent.

"Alrighty, let's talk about tomorrow's battle then." Tong smiled at Liang and stuck out his tongue

"Lets." Bei picked up the book and threw it back at Liang. "Next time you throw something I'm shoving it down your throat."

"You'd have better luck shoving it up his ass." Fei busted out laughing.

"Well, the plan is as follows. Lui Bei, Guan Yu and I will remain in the fort. Zhang Fei will be positioned at the western gate. Yue Ying at the central entrance to the forest. Pang Tong the southern gate. Huang Zhong and Wei Yan southern entrance to the forest. Lu Bu and his wife, take the northern forest entrance. Zhao Yun and Ma Chao, you will be reinforcements. I believe they will ambush us in the woods."

"Fucking brilliant!" Cal hollered. "I could have never foreseen anyone throwing ambush parties at us in a dense fog ridden forest. You truly are a genius! Everyone, let's give the sleeping dragon a round of applause for this incredible deductive abilities!"

The officers all began to clap for him, forcing the aggravated man to sit down. Once that happened Pang Tong leapt to his feet. "Alright! So we know those bastards are out there. Send out scouts, kick a lot of ass and don't forget you are the first wave of the assault. Send those scouts back to your second line and let them sweep through in support. Liu Xun is an easy man to take down. Let's get our lord a capital, huh?"

"Did he say Liu Xun? Isn't that that little kid that plays with matches?" Cal looked over to Yun.

"No, Liu. L…I…U. It's one of his relatives." Yun pointed at Liu Bei.

"Oh." She smirked. The rest of the officers got up and began to mill around, happy to see one another. Chao was smiling at her a lot, but she really didn't want to deal with him right now. She had enough on her mind without compounding them with his problems. Lu Bu approached Liu Bei and began to blither on about trying to persuade Zhang Liao to Shu. She had enough; it was time for a ride before dinner. Without saying anything to anyone she slipped out of the tent and went over to the stable. Ares nickered, but not to her. Lotus was back and in heat.

"You have such a one track mind, boy." He pulled her tack off the peg and walked over to his stall.

"Hey! I thought I saw you slip out. Anything wrong?" Chao bounced into the stable.

"No…How was your trip?"

"Wish you would have been with us." He smiled.

"Me too." She turned to him, "You look like you're about to explode. What's up?"

"I have to tell you something, I…." He looked up as Lu Bu stormed in.

"We're leaving. I've had enough." Then he was gone.

"What now?" Cal moaned. "I'm sorry, I'll catch you later."

"Promise?" He grabbed her hand.

"Yeah." She gave him a half-assed smile. _What the hell was with him?_ She walked out and saw Lu Bu duck into their tent. He always had some kind of problem, well not always. Only when he didn't get his way. Thirty years old and still such an obnoxious child. She entered the tent and crossed her arms.

"I'm sick of this shit." He rolled up his maps and began to tie them with little pieces of twine. "I'm trying to help. Zhang Liao is a good acquisition. And I know I can get him, he's my closest friend for god's sake. They don't want me here so I'm going. I'm not going to stand for these fucking insults they keep tossing at me. Go ahead, tell me how noble and virtuous Liu Bei is. Tell me about his people and his dedication to his officers and all the other bullshit you usually spit out at me. Go on, tell me how this isn't going to work out and how I'm the one who's being selfish. Tell me why you don't want to go with me." He tossed another map into the pile. Then began to rummage through some paperwork, not looking up at her.

"I'm pregnant." She muttered and looked away.

Lu Bu froze. _Did she say….? _He almost forgot about all of that, it had been two months almost three. He looked up at her and swung around the desk. Slowly he picked her chin up with his finger; her eyes were welling with tears. "Are you serious?"

"Why would I lie about that?" She pulled away from him. This wasn't supposed to happen. She was loosing control of the situation.

Lu Bu let the realization of the statement sink in and her wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. "This is great news! Why haven't you told me? Cal, we're going to have a baby!"

_Yeah, we. _"I…I'm not prepared for this."

"Are you kidding? Of course you are. Come on every woman has those kinds of instincts. You'll be a great mother! Oh, god, I'm going to be a father…" He smiled, finally something worthwhile.

"I have a different set of instincts." She mumbled but he wasn't listening, he grabbed her arm and yanked her out of the tent at a run.

"Hey! Everybody! I have some great news!" He swung Cal around and wrapped his arms around her and pulled her back into his chest. "Cal's pregnant! We're having a baby!"

Cal watched everyone have the same terrified reaction. This couldn't be happening….

--------------------

"Abort! Abort!" Tong grabbed Chao's arm and pulled him behind a tree.

"Oh my god…I'm too late."

"No! You just can't go through with you're current plan." Tong looked back as Lu Bu took Liu Bei's congratulatory handshake and turned it into a bear hug.

"This is horrible." Yun came around to join them. "Tong I thought you…"

"I did." He hissed. "There was no reason that those herbs wouldn't have worked unless someone switched them!" He looked back at Lu Bu. "That son of a bitch."

"So this was his plan?" Yun asked. "How could I have been so blind?"

"Alright, we need a new plan. Chao, hey bud, look at me."

Chao looked at Tong and felt like his heart was going to implode. "This is all because of me…"

"No!" Ying smacked him on the head.

"Ouch, stop hitting me there!" He rubbed his occipital bone.

"Alright, what's the new tactic?" Ying looked at Tong.

"I'm going to make sure I'm Lu Bu's best friend. Then I'm going to wait for him to make a mistake and take his ass out." Chao growled. "I'm not letting him use her."

"Good." She rubbed his shoulder. "But we need something more then that."

"He won't be doing much of anything until she gives birth…"Yun swallowed hard, it was painful to say. His best friend was going to carry Lu Bu's spawn.

"Right. So meet in my tent tonight. All of us. We need to get our shit together. We have underestimated him and that will not happen again. Now go, we can't let anyone figure out what we're up to." Tong watched Chao's eyes turn to blind rage. "Whoa son, that isn't the way."

"I'll kill him."

"No, you're going to have to wait until he makes his move." Tong looked back at Lu Bu who was happy as could be. "It will be hard, but you have to act like nothing's wrong."

"Impossible."

"Then get out of here, come back after you cool off."


	24. The Campaign for Cheng Du

Thanks for all the horrified reviews. ;-) I really don't hate my OC, I just have to set some people up for a horrible demise. Besides who better to play the knights in shining armor than Ma Chao and Zhou Tai? Thank you for the review Clarinet. I know poor Kongming was really an awesome guy and the game doesn't portray him as being such an ass, but I can't help but hate him. I think I have a subconscious hatred of people who use fans in battle. I can't stand Sima Yi or the Qiao's either….I may be on to something. I promise I'll make it up to the sleeping dragon in my other fanfiction GTA:Luo Yong. Yes, as if my chapters weren't choppy enough, I'm writing two highly involved stories at once. Good thing I have a touch of insomnia. Anyhow tell me what you all think of the latest installment, I know it's not my best work, but I'm getting impatient with these filler chapters. I'm chafing at the bit to unravel my grand plan…….. wicked Cao Cao laugh

Chapter 24

The Battle of Cheng Du

A familiar figure appeared from the east and Ying practically fainted. "Oh my god."

"Hey!" Cal grabbed her before she leapt off the fortress wall. "Remember not everyone knows."

"He's come, Cal. He's come for me!" She ran down the stairs.

"No, he's come to bring us bad news." She looked over at the solemn figure of Zhou Tai riding his jet black steed. His head was low; he had been riding a long way thinking to keep his mind off of something. She sighed; _please don't let her know my pain._ She trotted down the stairs.

Ying somehow held herself back. She knew she couldn't just race up to him and leap into his arms, it would be bad. Instead she stood by the gate, welcoming her warrior. But his face was wracked with sadness, and she looked to him as he stopped in front of her. She wanted to take his pain away, to make everything better. But no, she had to just stand there and offer a typical greeting. "General, what brings you all this way? Are you here to aid us?"

Tai smiled, she was maintaining her composure but her eyes betrayed her. "I bring news….for Liu Bei and his wife."

"Oh." She caught the hollow sound of his voice as he said 'his wife'. Someone was gone, someone dear to her. "Please, come in."

"General." Cal nodded to him. "Can I take your horse? I know you have ridden hard to get here."

"Yes, thank you." He patted Mariner and handed his reins to the woman.

"I'll take you to Liu Bei. He is in the center of town." Ying bit her lip.

"Thank you, my lady." He followed Ying.

Ying walked ahead of him and turned pointing at a small dwelling, "I've missed you so much." Then she looked back ahead.

Tai let a smile warm his weary face. She was brilliant to come up with such a unique method of talking to him without making it obvious that they weren't talking about the objects she was pointing to. At least he had his helmet. "I haven't stopped thinking about you, my love."

Ying clenched her scythe. He was so near but she couldn't even touch him. Suddenly Ma Chao galloped past, obviously to plead with Liu Bei again for a better assignment. He was trying his best to work his way up to Lu Bu's position, but Zhuge Liang was insisting that he back up Huang Zhong instead. Wei Yan was inches away from taking Kongming's head. She heard Ma Chao's final plea, "My Lord, it is wrong to let a pregnant woman fight! Let me take her place." _Oh __Cal__ was going to kill him._

"You are right General. I can't believe I have overlooked her safety. Please communicate the changes to the proper parties." Liu Bei shook his head; that was close. His head must be clouded with everything else if he almost let that happen.

Chao tore past them again. Tai finally came up to Ying's side. "Who's pregnant?"

"A lot's happened in the last few months. Ummm…Lu Bu and Cal got married and she's carrying his child." She watched Tai's eyes grow wide. Then with a whisper she added, "I'll tell you the rest later." Then loudly she said "My lord! Zhou Tai has come with a message for you."

Liu Bei stared at the man; it was the last person he expected. "Please, come in."

"Sir, I have a private message for you and Lady Sun."

"Oh."

Ying waited outside with her own husband. She noticed Kongming's antsy pace. He thought he should be allowed in there. Bastard. Then she heard Shang wail and Tai came out. He shook his head and Ying tried to be strong for him.

"Well, what is it? Surely you can tell us now?" Laing sniped.

"Sun Jian is dead." Tai looked to Ying. "My lady, if I could bother you for a drink of water before I return home."

"Come, sir, I will pack some meat buns for you as well." Ying watched her husband disappear into the tent.

"So what's going on, other than the battle that is about to start?" Tai stood proud and straight next to the woman he adored.

"Cal fell in love with Ma Chao, she told him and he really wasn't ready for that. So he refused her and Lu Bu took advantage of the situation and offered to marry her instead. So Cal, Miss Low Self-esteem, figured she better take that opportunity to keep Lu Bu in line since she didn't have a shot at anything better. So she's obviously decided to give up the rest of her life to babysitting Lu Bu and that bastard is trying to win her loyalty by getting her pregnant. So now there's a baby coming. But Ma Chao realized that he did in fact love her and now he's trying to gain Lu Bu's trust in order to catch him in the act of treason and kill him to free his woman. Then you add the fact that all of us are backing him and formulating plans to help without the high command or the happy couple knowing and you get one hell of a novel if you ever want to write it down. Pretty simple really." She smiled up at him demurely.

"You really know how to keep things interesting around here don't you? Nothing ever happens in Wu except for the Qiao's bouncing around from bedroom to bedroom." He followed her into a small cottage and when he determined no one was there, he kissed her.

"Oh god, Tai. I thought I'd never be able to feel your touch again." She ran her hands over his face and kissed him passionately.

---------------------------

"I'm sorry, what?" Cal turned to look at a smiling Ma Chao.

"You've been reassigned because of your condition. Cal it just isn't right for you to be out there." He grinned. He wished he could tell her the truth, but Yun swore up and down she would work against them. His beautiful stubborn little roman was going to do her job, and he loved her even more for it.

"My condition?" She snapped.

"Look, we're all concerned about you. It's dangerous out there, you have to think about both of you now." He tried to smile but the thought sickened him. That could have been his child…..

"Did you ever think it might not be so bad to have something happen to the both of us?" She drew her rapier.

"Easy! The war's a long way from being over, you'll have plenty more opportunities to fight." He back Lotus away from her as she advanced. He was worried now, talk like that meant she was a bit more depressed then they had estimated.

"Why the hell are you so concerned? I'm just a common soldier, remember? Aren't I too lowly for you to be concerned with?"

Chao gulped, that one really stung. If he could only tell her it would be alright, that one day he would be the one to save her from everything. "Those are your orders, like them or not. I need to assist your husband, if you'll excuse me." He turned and trotted over to Pang Tong who was resting on his staff.

"Well you do have a way with her don't you." Tong laughed as he watched Cal turn red and kick a crate open.

"I love her when she's angry." Chao smiled.

"You better get out of here, because if she grabs one of those bows we're all going to die and you will make it through unscathed. And frankly I've been shot enough. So git."

"Owww, she's a bad archer. That's adorable."

"She can throw knives just fine pal, so you better go make friends with the mighty Lu Bu before you end up dead."

"Hehe." Chao rubbed his hands together. "I'm going to make a new friend!" He launched Lotus into a gallop and headed up to the north woods.

"Good luck, lad, you're going to need it."

--------------------------------

"Zhou Tai?" Liu Bei looked over at the cottage that was the storehouse.

"Shit!" Ying hissed and tried to put herself back together.

"Relax." Tai smoothed out her hair and adjusted her headpiece. "Lord Liu Bei?" he asked as he ducked out the door,

"Sir, I was hoping you would escort Shang back to Jian Ye with you. She needs to be with her family."

"But you're about to attack Cheng Du, do you not need her here?" Tai was surprised.

"There are something's that are more important. We can survive without her and she needs to be with her brothers and mother now. I know how hard it must be."

"If that is your decision, she will have my protection." Tai bowed.

"General, you are a good man."

------------------------------------

"General! Liu Bei has decided not to send your wife into battle, considering she is with child." Ma Chao rode up to his nemesis.

"You're her replacement?" Lu Bu eyed him

"Yup." _I'll eventually be yours._

"That's a good trade. At least I'll have someone who can fight." He looked ahead at the forest.

_And when I fight you, you won't be so cocky. _"I didn't get a chance to congratulate you last night, you must be very excited."

Lu Bu smiled happily, "Yes, I've waited so long for this."

"Hopefully it will be a strong son." _Who will slit his father's throat like you did to yours._

"Well even if she gives me a girl, it's not like I won't try again." Lu Bu smirked.

_I show more concern for breeding my horse than you do for your wife, you ass._ "That's right. They'll be interesting looking children."

"I just hope they don't come out with tails or anything. I don't know how well mixing races works out."

_You ignorant asshole._ "Well, we'll find out soon. Do you think that we'll go after Cao Cao after we finally get this damned city?" _Cue, Lu Bu's offer._.

"Well if not you and I can always go after him, right?" He smiled.

_Who knew?. _"We may very well have to."

"Indeed." Lu Bu nodded and looked at Ma Chao with a new appreciation. "You know as one of my officers you would be entitled to perks."

_You mean like skewering your worthless ass?_ "Oh?"

"I noticed you took an interest in my wife. She's pretty good in bed. I have to say those Roman's know how to make a man happy."

Chao gripped his spear tight enough to turn his knuckles white. _Oh no you didn't just…._"That's definitely something I'll never hear out of Liu Bei."

"Think on it. Let me know." He rode off into the forest.

Chao closed his eyes and felt his stomach churn. How can he sit by and let Lu Bu do this to her. One thing was for certain, a lot of men would die today by his hand. He kicked Lotus into a gallop.

---------------------------------

Cal looked up as Tai, Shang and Liu Bei came towards the gate. Shang's eyes were red and her face sopping with tears. "Who?" she looked to Tai.

"Sun Jian." He looked to Liu Bei who was trying his best to comfort his wife. "Cal, let's go saddle up the horses."

"Oh yeah, sure." She turned and walked with him looking over her shoulder at her leaders.

"You've been busy." He said.

"I'm doing my job, why don't you leave me alone and do yours." She stared at him coldly.

"Mmmmm. You know you have to resist the comforts of excelling at what to do if you're going to hope to change."

"Really, I recall you looking really content on those boats at Chi Bi."

"Just giving you some advice that's all."

"Well you're so old and wise, why wouldn't I want to listen to you." She swung into the barn and pulled Mystique out of her stall. "So how is your affair with Ying turning out? Still tormenting each other with the promise of happiness?"

"Just because you got yourself into a hopeless situation doesn't mean you should take it out on me." He brushed Mariner off. "Or your friend."

"How long before you can't resist the urge to return back home to the sea. Huh? Two maybe three years?"

"I've given it up. You know, self-control, it's this thing you learn when you grow up."

Cal quickly saddled Shang's horse and began to lead her out of the barn. "I've promised to protect my lord with my life and if that means living out the rest of my days in an eternal hell then so be it. I know that I'm nothing more than a weapon of war, maybe you should come to that realization as well." She walked out of the barn.

"No wonder you welcome death so readily." He scratched Mariner and led him out. He swung into the saddle and trotted out of the barn. "How foolish of me, I forgot my meat buns."

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"Well, whelp, you want to got pelt some bad guys with arrows?" Huang Zhong looked over his shoulder at Wei Yan who was staring in the general direction of Zhuge Liang.

"Mmmm…..die." Yan swung his Comet strike in an arch.

"Ok, I'll pelt them with arrows and you can clear away the trash, huh?"

"Yes."

"We always have to do things, _your_ way."

"Stupid…old…man."

"READY! AIM! FIRE!" Zhong watched the arrows fly into the forest and smiled. It was a beautiful sight. Then he heard the screams. "Shoot. It looks like someone was hiding out there! Well darn, lets go see if they got hurt by our totally uncalled for practice volley."

"Here…Kitty…Kitty." Wei Yan ran off into the fog.

-----------------------------------

Yue Ying looked into the forest ahead of her and smiled. Zhou Tai had thanked her for her kindness and she was feeling really good because of it. She readied her scythe and charged into the dense forest knowing that today she was going to get a very high kill count.

"Hey! Wait up." Zhang Fei rode after her, immediately taking a wrong turn and leading his men up a separate path.

Ying found her first ambush party and tore into it. There were crossbowman, infantryman and even an officer: Li Yan.

Zhang Fei rode up the hill and looked around. "This forest is a bit too quiet." He belched and scared off the birds. Then another flock of birds scattered in front of him about 100 yards. Hmmmmm…ambush?

------------------------------------

Ma Chao raced ahead of Lu Bu, furious with his conversation that he had with the man earlier. Perhaps he wasn't up to this whole ludicrous plan after all. He charged through an ambush party throwing men everywhere, figuring he'd leave the remains for Lu Bu to clean up. Maybe Tong and Yun were wrong, maybe she would understand if he told her. He had to try, she was just miserable and her husband was going to see to it that she stayed that way. He galloped up the hill and noticed something….was that Pang De?

"Villainous invading scum! I Pang De will smite you!" The man swung his blade into Ma Chao's advancing troops.

"I will answer you with my spear!" Chao ran at his former officer and hammered him with a musou.

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"Enemy reinforcements!" Liu Bei looked to the south. "This does not bode well, they are heading here."

"All of our units have advanced into the forest. All we have is Jiang Wei, Pang Tong and Quinirius." Zhuge Liang looked at the two enemy generals riding towards the river from the south and the one attacking from the east.

"They are heading here." Liu Bei drew his sword and watched Cal race into battle with Zhu Jun at the eastern gate. "And we will meet them."

"Send help at once!" Zhuge Liang looked to his messenger. "Relay that to the generals of the second wave!"

"Where is Guan Yu?" Liu Bei asked.

"I sent him in to back up Yue Ying." Liang admitted.

"Then prepare to fight, Master Zhuge." Liu Bei galloped off to the east to assist Cal.

"Wei, aid Pang Tong. I will watch over our lord."

"Sir!" Wei galloped away.

---------------------------------------

"Liu Bei is a fiend!" Zhu Jin hacked at Cal's head with his sword. "How dare he attack Liu Xun!"

"Liu Bei is going to restore the Han instead of sitting on his ass in a castle waiting for Cao Cao to conquer him! You are a fool to follow Liu Xun!" Cal poked at the man and sent him flying into the enemy gate captain.

"Cal, please! Let us handle this!" Liu Bei dismounted and attacked the enemy general as soon as he stood up.

"Sir, I can still fight. I'm not an invalid!"

"You heard our lord." Zhuge Liang pushed her out of the way with his fan.

"Oh here comes the mighty hero, Kongming with his fan of death." She readied herself and prepared to strike down the gate captain when a blast of light shot past her and the man dropped.

"Still, skeptical?" He fanned himself.

"You got a new fan." She looked at him and got a chill. He was becoming a formidable foe.

"Yes and we are quite capable of handing these men by ourselves. Maybe you should retire and go lay down for a while."

"Maybe I should find a less cluttered area to fight in." She whistled for Ares and rode off.

"Whatever you want." He smacked a few privates with his fan and watched Liu Bei toss Zhu Jun in the air and finish him.

------------------------------

"Well, hey there!" Pang Tong waved at Jiang Wei who looked at him distastefully.

"You obviously need some help." Wei dismounted and waited for Yang Haui and Gao Pei to appear.

"HELLO!" Cal trotted up and leapt into Tong's arms. "I missed you."

"Grrrrr.." Tong planted a kiss on her eyelid.

"You two make me sick." Wei walked off to lure yang Haui into a fight.

"Yet he touches Liang's greasy hair." Cal smiled.

"You must be feeling better." Tong put her down and watched her draw her weapon.

"Actually I'm extremely depressed and I want to throw up." She pointed to Gao Pei. "He's mine."

"If that's what it takes to make you happy."

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Lu Bu saw Wei Yan and Huang Zhong emerge from the forest and begin fighting with the last of Liu Xun's resistance force. Ma Chao subdued Pang De and convinced him to join Liu Bei, which surprised Lu Bu immensely. It was turning out to be a very lucky place this Cheng Du. Perhaps it would be a suitable capital, much better than Xia Pi. Nothing good ever came of that place. He looked around and spotted Liu Xun. Piece of cake. Then Zhao Yun rode up with his reinforcements and attacked and killed Liu Xun. The battle was over. How anti-climactic, they had fought so fiercely in the forest.

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Liu Bei sheathed his weapon and waited. Everything was quiet…well not everything. Cal was throwing up on the other side of the tent and he was worried about her. He had lost his second wife to complications during her pregnancy and he feared that Cal might succumb too. Then there was the fact that Lu Bu was having a child….and Shang refused to have his. He went back behind the tent and knelt down next to the girl. "How are you, my dear?"

"I was hoping to projectile vomit on Liang, but I don't have that kind of control yet."

Bei hugged her. "It will be ok, we'll be in Cheng Du before long and you'll be more comfortable."

"Sir?" She looked up at him, "If something happens to me after this kid is born, make sure Lu Bu doesn't take him away. I don't want him to be able to replicate himself; I want you all to stop him from being corrupted."

"I'll see to it personally."

"Shang's such a lucky girl." She rested her head on his shoulder.

"Wish she thought that." He rested his chin on her head and thought about his wife, galloping towards her home. To pay her respects to her father and avoid the discussion they had been having for three months.

---------------------------------

"So this is Cheng Du?" Pang Tong looked around. "Not bad, could use a few more produce tents, but not bad."

"So let's check out the palace, huh?" Huang Zhong smiled, "and the kitchen!"

"Mmmmm….River…..Has…..Snakefish!" Wei Yan rubbed his stomach and thought about the delicacy sizzling in a pan of boiling hot butter.

"Snakefish!" Cal rode up. "Can I help kill 'em?"

Wei Yan smiled. "You…..need….bow."

"Er, then that's a no." She looked annoyed.

"I'll…teach."

"Hey! I'm the archer, you're the crazy guy. Let's get our roles straight." Huang Zhong smiled at Cal and took her hand. "My fair lady, I will teach you how to be an archer."

"Haha!" Tong patted Zhong's shoulder. "Good thing we've got nothing but time."

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Ma Chao rode into the stable and couldn't believe his luck. Cal was grooming Red Hare and didn't really seem to care what else was happening around her. He couldn't take seeing her miserable and he had to give her a glimpse of hope to help her through all of this. He jumped off of Lotus and scooped his love into his arms and kissed her.

Startled Cal pushed against him and broke off the kiss. "Chao?"

"Cal, I love you. I wanted to tell you before, but we got interrupted. I wasn't prepared for you to tell me that…..I had enough time to realize I don't want to be without you. Can you ever forgive me?"

"Is this some kind of hormone induced hallucination?" She rubbed his face.

"No, not in the least." He bent down to kiss her again and she met him halfway. He pushed her up against the stall wall and began to caress her.

Cal melted in his arms and then she began to feel nauseous. Then reality kicked her in the head. "Chao…"

"I know. Everything is really bad right now, but I promise I'm going to do everything I can to make it better."

She smiled and let him wrap his arms around her. "Are you really serious?"

"I've never been more sure of anything in my entire life. The man you married is trying to use you and I can't let that happen. I'm watching him, waiting for him to make his move."

"So am I."

"Honey, you have to believe me that I'm going to get you through this. I want to take care of you; I want to end this cycle of horrible things that seem to rule your life. From here on out, I am here for you."

"This is the worst thing ever. I can't believe I let him do this to me." She felt him pull her closer and kiss her head. Now she began to feel guilty for what she said to Tai, he was right. She just had to be able to let things go and try and make a change for the better. And Chao was here for her to help her out of this mess she created, just like Tai was trying to help Ying.

"We just have to wait…right?"

"Yeah. We have to be patient."

"I can do that for you. It's going to be hard, but I can do that for you."

"Chao?" she looked up at him.

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

"Why? If it weren't for me, you'd be happy and single."

"No, I still need to make sure I do my job. Ok? Don't give up on me, no matter what happens."

"I never will. Never. I promise some day you're going to be happy. I won't have it any other way." He kissed her again and it meant something more than it ever did with any other woman.


	25. The Sleeping Dragon Awakens

Alright I Suppose I should have put a warning in earlier, but oh well. If you haven't figured it out by now, Zhuge Liang isn't going to be a good guy in the fic. Sorry.

Chapter 25

The Sleeping Dragon Awakens

Cal rested her had against Ma Chao's strong chest. He had brought her to the meeting that Pang Tong planned and everyone was a bit surprised.

"You have incredible patience." Ma Dai sighed.

"I'm not letting her be miserable just because you all formed some plan." He hugged Cal tightly and she smiled. "Especially not when that bastard Lu Bu offered her 'services' to me to get me as an officer." He was still feeling the bitterness of that conversation hours after it had occurred.

"That doesn't surprise me." Cal sat up and took a gold coin out of her vest pocket and threw it on the table. "A gold piece says my husband tries to play that off as a favor to me."

"No one's going to take that bet." Yun tossed the coin back at her.

"So what do you want me to do?" She looked at Tong. "Oh wise sage?"

"You can't so much of anything for six months can you?" Tong rubbed her head.

"Ughhh." She snuggled closer to Chao.

"It will be ok." He kissed her head. "I'm here for you."

"Oh my god, I think I'm going to vomit." Dai rolled his eyes. "Chao are you always like this with women?"

"Maybe you are better off with Lu Bu." Ying laughed.

"Leave him alone." Cal snapped. "Or I'll cut out the tongue of the next person who teases him."

"Somethings never change." Guan Yu walked in and sat down.

"You too?" Cal smiled. These guys were awesome.

"Of course. I've been here since the beginning, remember? Even before the 'little dragon' decided he needed to champion you."

"Hehe. Little." Ying poked at him

"Not in your dreams." Yun smiled back.

"Hey Ying. Next time you see Tai, tell him I'm sorry. I said a few things that were uncalled for." Cal looked over to the woman with sincere eyes.

"I'll go catch him and tell him. You mean that much to me." Ying stood

Tong pulled her down by her tunic. "Oh now you're the court jester."

"So we need to wait for six months then force his hand." Cal reiterated Tong's best ploy.

"That really is the best you two could do?" Yu looked at Ying and Tong.

"He's watching himself now; he won't do anything to jeopardize his property." Tong patted Cal's leg. "Sorry honey."

"It's ok; I'm feeling much better about all this now. You guys are great."

"Practice…Archery?" Wei Yan suggested.

"Tomorrow. Hunt the damn fish in daylight with a novice." Zhong corrected his friend.

"What about Bei? And Shang?" Cal asked.

"Shang's in Tai's hands now. His rough masculine hands…. sigh " Ying smiled dreamily.

"You better hope not!" Yun smacked her.

"Bei's not really good. He's not sleeping at all and wasting all his time trying to work up a plan for Cheng Du. He's worried, very worried." Guan Yu sighed. "And so am I."

"I think I'm going to be spending most of my day with our emperor. Poor, Lu Bu." Cal smiled.

"Speaking of, he's looking for you." Yu smiled.

"I better go, master's calling." Cal kissed Chao and left.

"Do you remember the days when battle was fun?" Yun looked at Guan Yu.

"Oh you mean before any of these people showed up and started humping each other?" Yu asked in return.

"We've got to bring an end to this nonsense quick. Cao Cao is waiting and we are still weak. We should let Cal and Liu Bei work on Cheng Du while the rest of us scout and recruit." Tong scratched his chin.

"Have you noticed something odd about Kongming lately?" Ying was a bit concerned, he wasn't himself. He was more quiet…the way he got when he was calculating.

"We all try to avoid him honey." Tong smiled.

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"Wei?" Liang looked over his maps and watched his apprentice come over.

"Sir?" Jiang Wei sat down next to him. Liang had been working on a plan and made it very clear romance was not on his mind. Not that Wei really was upset by that, he had found quite a few women in Cheng Du worth playing with. He was drawn in by his master's mind and his aurora of loneliness. He was letting his wife's affair get him down and Wei really couldn't resist helping him out. He found it an enjoyable experience, he liked making Kongming happy. When his master needed some attention again, well Wei would be there for him. He was so brilliant that no one really got him, including his wife. She accepted that they were equals, however she wanted him to treat her like a wife-sometimes. Zhuge Liang was not that kind of man. Once he determined what your relationship was going to be, that was how it was. He worked so hard for Shu, but even Liu Bei didn't give him the respect he deserved. When Kongming had hesitantly muttered his treasonous words, Jiang Wei gave him his full support. Liu Bei was too emotional, especially now that Shang had gone back home. Shu needed a leader that understood the people and had the strong mind to protect them from Cao Cao. Now they were here, in the newly claimed capital, plotting against their king.

"I think…we can use Lu Bu."

"Sir?!?"

"It would keep our hands clean of this….tragedy that must happen. Lu Bu is an idiot, who is capable of only one thought, killing. He is an excellent general and a horrible leader because of it. He is going to be easy to manipulate now, with his bitch pregnant. She'll be doting on Lui Bei and he'll be the odd man out. It will be our opportunity."

"Why is he here sir?"

"Like I said he is an excellent general. I have never seen anyone of his caliber before. He can single handedly wipe out an army and the men follow him because they know he will prevail. It was a good acquisition although a labor intensive one. He can train troops too, exceptionally well. But he is temperamental and headstrong."

"So, once he does the deed……how do we get rid of him?"

Liang finally smiled. "We alert the others."

"Ma Chao will kill him. He loves his wife."

Liang looked up at his apprentice. "What?"

"I heard them in the stable. They are plotting against him…all of them."

"Interesting. It would appear that our scheming will go unnoticed then." Liang played with his mustache. "I was reluctant to join Liu Bei but was persuaded by his persistence. In the beginning he was strong and virtuous. However the years and officers are taking their toll. He is being easily suaded by the opinions of the wrong people. He has reprimanded me and turned down my superior strategy in favor of another's, just to side with the crowd."

"I am with you sir." Jiang Wei watched his friend's anger build up. The insults were flying and they were all aimed at him. "Who can we count on?"

"We will not be able to avoid a confrontation with some of the officers. I know we will have to eliminate Wei Yan and Pang Tong. The rest we will have to see how everything plays out."

"How will we fight Cao Cao with fewer officers?"

"We will ally ourselves with Wu once more. My brother, Jin, is with them I have been communicating with him constantly. He is not aware of our plan, but if we come to them for a pact against the evil menace we cannot fail."

"Is there some other way?" Wei looked away, he was uncertain about eliminating Liu Bei.

"Unfortunately no. He is too far gone. Remember: the result validates the deeds." He couldn't help but smile. She would be amongst the first to die. It was also possible he could get Lu Bu to take care of that as well.

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"I hear you're looking for me?" Cal walked up to Lu Bu.

"Yeah." He laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"That." He pointed to Ares on top of Lotus.

"Oh no!" She hollered and ran over to her horse. "Dammit no! Not her!"

Lu Bu chuckled. He saw Cal succeed in pulling her stud off the mare by his halter, but it was too late. Lotus was settled, she was a very happy mare. Eleven months from now, there would be one odd looking foal hitting the ground.

Liu Bei walked over to see what the commotion was about. "What's wrong?"

"That little grey thing just hammered Ma Chao's mare for a good five minutes." Lu Bu laughed. "He's going to be pissed."

Liu Bei watched Cal yell at her horse who snorted tiredly and walked away from her. Liu Bei couldn't help but think of how much trouble Cal was causing, but he also couldn't help but think the foal and child that were going to be coming were going to surprise everyone. He was genuinely happy they stumbled upon her, she kept things balanced.

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"Chao!" Lu Bu ran up to him.

"Uh Huh?" Ma Chao studded in his tracks. The urge to attack Lu Bu was great.

"What do you think about my wife's little horse?"

_This is odd._ "He's got a lot of heart and speed. I think he's a pretty well bred little animal. Why?"

"I am glad to hear you say that." Lu Bu smirked.

"Why?"

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Cal was dragging Ares back into the barn, cursing him for his intelligence and stall-escaping ability. Now he wanted another round with Lotus and was refusing to walk on the lead line. Then she saw her distressed love running towards his precious Lotus. "See what you've done!" She hissed at Ares who licked her.

"Lotus?" Chao ran his hands over her neck and the mare rubbed her head against his chest and sighed. She was the happiest that she'd been in the last two months. "CAL!"

"Yes, general." Cal smiled sweetly.

"I'm commandeering your horse!" He was slightly pissed and showed it as he walked over to her. "It's the least you can do."

"If I can have the foal."

"Nope. You take care of Lotus, and I'll give Ares back after I find another mount."

"Chao…"

"You don't have a choice." He leaned in closer and whispered. "I'll give you the foal as a wedding present."

She looked at him in disbelief and watched him take Ares's lead rope and pull him into the barn. "Well let's hope I don't break him in half."

"He's not that small!" She growled and ran into the barn after him. "You better…."

Chao wrapped his arm around her and kissed her. "What? I better what?"

"You better keep that promise, or else." She kissed him and pushed him into her horse.

"Or else what?" He smiled and let her go, hearing footsteps.

"Come on honey, it's time for dinner." Lu Bu smiled at her and watched Chao take her pride and joy away.

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"Are we there yet?" Shang looked up at Tai with tear filled eyes.

"I can't make the winds blow any harder." He looked up at the sails on the small boat. They rode to the first landing on the Chang Jiang and boarded the swift little boat he came in on. Mariner nickered below deck.

"What happened?" She finally asked and went over to him.

Tai wrapped his arm around her small frame, "It was an ambush."

"But he always….."

"Shang, they dropped rocks and boulders on his position. It was well planned." He let her cry into his cape but looked down in annoyance when she blew her nose into it. Ah well, if it made her feel better.

"But he'll be buried before we get home." She sobbed

"Sometimes the living need you more than the dead." He winced as she blew another load of mucus into his black cape.

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"I'm going to bed." Cal turned away from the dining hall before they came to it.

"But it smells like Chow Mien….I don't have a clue if you like it or not. My guess is yes since you eat like a pig even when you're not knocked up." Lu Bu felt her pull away from him.

Cal shook her head. "I don't want it." She raced down the hallway to get away from the smell. The smell that would make her ride her horse up the stairs of the palace on any other day, but today food was the last thing she wanted. _Is this how it's going to be? I can't even stand the smell of food?_

Lu Bu shrugged. He walked into the dining hall and sat down next to Ma Chao. "How's your mare?"

"Fine." _I hate you, let me at least eat in peace._ "How's your wife?"

Lu Bu shrugged again. "Sick. She can't talk if she's puking. So pass the fried noodles."

"You're not concerned?" _The least you can do is hold her hair._

"You heard what she's been through. This must be heaven compared to the rest of her life." He put a handful of noodles in his mouth and reached for the wine.

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"You're very quiet." Ying sat beside Liang and touched his hand. He quickly withdrew it.

"Am I supposed to believe you care for me now?"

"You just are really distant, I was getting concerned. I thought you'd be happy about this conquest."

"The glory is all Pang Tong's. Or have you forgotten this was his campaign?" Liang sipped his wine.

"Alright." She took some wonton soup. It was good to know Kin had taken over the kitchen, his wonton soup was to die for.

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Liu Bei sighed and fiddled with his chopsticks. Shang was probably crying into Zhou Tai's shoulder now, now that she finally needed her husband.

"Dad!" Chan pulled on his sleeve.

"Yes boy?" Liu Bei tussled his kid's hair.

"Jiang Wei taught me how to parry today!"

"You'll have to show me." He smiled. Maybe now he could have some time with his son before it was too late.

"Sir, we'll need to discuss the upcoming campaigns after dinner." Zhuge Liang smiled at him from down the table.

"Of course Kongming." He looked back at his son. _Maybe later I'll have time to be a father._

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Cal lay on the balcony tired from being sick. The cool breeze washed over the small getaway and made her forget the only reason she was out here was so she could vomit. How nice this was all turning out. She was miserable and Chao wanted to help her. But he couldn't because she rushed into something and got herself in way too deep. Marrying Lu Bu? Come on Calpurnia, there was never a need for that. Or was there? He troops were always amongst the best and his kill count was always the highest. Men ran from him and the others died by his hand. The army was still so very small. Then there was the fact that Liu Bei had agreed to this. He knew what was best didn't he? Cao Cao would come, just like he always did. But how long would it be before Lu Bu was no longer content with the current arrangements? The bitchiness with the Zhang Liao issue was just the start. Now that there was land, he was sure to ask Liu Bei for a piece of it. Could she do this? Especially now? If he betrayed Liu Bei, he would have to die. And what would become of a traitor's child? She closed her eyes. Probably the same thing that happened to her, the orphan. That wouldn't happen, not again. She wouldn't let it.

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"So we need to recruit." Pang Tong looked over the map again.

"And there are some rebellions and bandit activity going on thanks to the upheaval of the former lord." Zhuge Liang traced his finger over the map. "Here and here. Hmmm.. Those are close to Ma Chao's lands. Perhaps we should send him with Lu Bu to get things under control."

"Why with Lu Bu? Why not Zhao Yun?" Ying gave her husband a troubled look.

Liang smiled, just as he predicted. "You are right. We should send him with Zhao Yun. Lu Bu should be here, training troops."

"He is very good at that." Liu Bei admired the mighty warrior's ability, on the battlefield and on the training ground.

"We should send some men to Mt Ding Jun. There are reports of a mass of Wei troops there." Liang tapped his fingers on the map.

"And we should be recruiting." Pang Tong added. "We need more men."

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"Hello Chan, are you wanting to practice some more?" Jiang Wei asked the child. He continued to sharpen his spear on the whetstone.

"Yes!" Chan jumped up and down excitedly.

"I thought your father wanted to watch you?" Wei asked and saw the child's face turn sad.

"He's busy."

"That seems to be the norm." Wei frowned.

"Yeah, but he's emperor. That's what you have to do." Chan sat down next to his new friend.

"Funny, Sun Jian used to spend a lot of time with his kids. I believe even Cao Cao has been seen playing with his new son Zhang. Chan, as your friend, I'm worried."

Chan looked at the ground and pulled up some grass. "I miss my dad."

"He seems more interested in Cal's unborn child then his own, if I may be so bold." Jiang Wei smiled, the young Liu boy was thinking on it. Zhuge Liang was right; Liu Chan would be incredibly easy to control. Once his father was gone, he would make the perfect puppet emperor. "You know I think of you like a brother and Master Zhuge looks on you as a son. Maybe you should start spending more time with the people that really care for you."

"But my dad loves me." Chan looked up at Wei with teary eyes.

"Then why is he ignoring you in favor of an unborn half-breed? I didn't want to say anything, but I think your man enough to hear this. You father has concerns that you might not turn out to be a good emperor and he asked Master Zhuge to take care of things if you didn't show any promise."

"Take care of things?" Chan's eyes got big.

Wei ran his finger across his throat to get the point across. "I fear he thinks he'll replace you with Lu Bu's son. He knows Cal is loyal to him and if the others kill Lu Bu like their planning, then maybe your dad will take her as a wife."

"But he loves Lady Sun!"

"Lady Sun is refusing to bear him a child. Cal is obviously fertile and willing. Besides, he can always adopt her child. He has made comments about him being bred to be a warrior." Wei wrapped his arm around the boy. "I shouldn't have said anything, but I don't want you to get hurt. Neither does Master Zhuge."

"Thank…you." Chan whimpered. How could his dad do that? Why didn't he love him anymore?

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"Lu Bu, might I have a word?" Zhuge Liang brushed past the giant and into the small library.

Lu Bu looked at the library hesitantly; he hated being cornered by an intellectual in his environment. He followed the man, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Please, close the door. What I have to say is somewhat sensitive."

"Whatever." Lu Bu did as he asked and took a seat on a plush chair. "So, what's so important?"

"Do you know your wife is plotting against you?"

"Oh?" He rolled his eyes.

"She is in love with Ma Chao, and apparently he returns her feelings. That doesn't disturb you?" Liang knew this would be a long discussion. His subtle attempts to make Lu Bu think were going to have to be extraordinarily obvious. The idiot's eyes were already betraying his confusion.

"Eh. It's not like I actually love her or anything. It's just like what you got with your wife. Ma Chao, Zhou Tai. Whoever they're screwing. It's all the same.

_Zhou Tai, mmmmm. Interesting pick Ying._ "Actually I do love my wife and she used to be very faithful to me until that little plague of yours showed up. She had single handedly undermined morality in this camp by imposing her culture on us. Cao Cao was wise to keep her reined in, or else his army would have suffered the same effects."

"What are you talking about?"

Liang sighed, he was using big words and it was confusing the moron. "Have you not listened to her tales from the homeland? These Romans, they believe in indulgences. Orgies, gluttony and conspiracies. She has infected us with her Roman evils. Ying was content with our relationship before Cal came. Interesting timing, hmmmm? Then there is the fact that all of our generals are working against me and you. We know she has no objections to murdering someone, thanks to her decrepit culture. They kill people all the time, assassinating the emperor, feeding the undesirables to the lions, fighting each other to the death for the amusement on the rich. Now she has brought these ideas with her and our own noble countrymen are being corrupted. First they all ganged up on me, because they feared my intelligence."

"Actually it was because you were an asshole." Lu Bu pointed out.

"Now they are focused on you."

"Huh?"

"You heard me. They hate you because you are getting on the way of the two lovers. Now they are conspiring to take you down. Which all works out actually, because it has given me a chance to put my plan into action."

"What now? Who's trying to kill me and what are you doing?"

"Ma Chao is obviously trying to be your friend so that he can get close enough to kill you and rescue his woman. I know you do not think of him as a threat, but you should. He is your equal on the battlefield, although his presence has yet to come into its own."

Lu Bu began to think about it. It was all so obvious now. "Go on."

"I want to dispose of Liu Bei, he is weak and Shu needs a proper leader. Someone that has the balls to attack Cao Cao. Someone like you."

"Go on." Lu Bu scratched his chin, finally this guy was paying off.

"Jiang Wei has already won over Liu Chan. Once Liu Bei is gone we will put the boy on the throne and act as his advisor and army commander. It will allow us to retain most of the generals that way. They will remain loyal to Liu Bei's heir. But once we achieve victory over Wei, we probably will be able to rid ourselves of him. Personally I have no desire to rule, you however…"

"Why me?"

"Because you are ambitious and you have already provided an invaluable service to me by taking your wife out of action for six months. She is the only one who would be able to figure me out; since she is schooled in lying and betrayal, she can pick it out very easily. The other generals are too loyal to their lord, you I know are not. That is why I agreed to your 'proposal' to ally with us for the whore. It worked out very well, it was almost as if we were thinking the same thoughts." Liang felt the bile rise to his throat as he said it. As if he was capable of thinking like a baboon.

"Hmmmm." Lu Bu sat back in his chair. "So what are you planning to do to Liu Bei?"

"He will sink into a depression soon. He is miserable without his wife and his son is now loyal to me. We will also isolate him from his brothers and friends, leaving him, your puking wife and me. I will be showering him with nothing but thought consuming ideas for the empire and he will be mentally exhausted. You will be here the entire time, alone training troops with Jiang Wei. I will prescribe a beneficial medication for him. It will keep him sedated and vulnerable to attack. Pity."

"When?"

"When the time is right." Liang looked out the window. "Is that suitable my lord?"

"Yes, very." Lu Bu smiled satisfactory.

"Excellent."

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"Well we are heading out." Zhao Yun looked around at the officers. "Say your tearful goodbyes, we may not come back."

Ying smack him. "You ass, you're just trying to get attention. Tong! Flash him!"

"No that's….oh god!" Yun turned away.

"Heheh. That will show you to upset the all powerful Yue Ying." Tong smirked and hugged one of his favorite women. "How bout you learn the flash command baby?"

"Because my man would cut you open if I did." She patted his cheek

Chao wandered over behind the small house where Cal was waiting for him. "You're going to miss your chance to hit on Zhao Yun."

"I guess I'll have to settle for you." She smiled and wrapped her hand around his head to bring him into her kiss.

"I'll bring you back a present." Chao wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into him. "Something point, painful and sharp."

"All I want is you. Be careful." She squeezed him tightly.

"I don't know if we'll make it back in time for the…uh event. We'll try. I want to be here for you." Chao closed his eyes. "Cal, I wish it could be mine."

"Me too."

"What you're doing is by far the most selfless thing I've ever heard of. You're the most incredible woman I've ever met."

"I love you Chao, just come home to me. I know I won't be something worth seeing when you get back, but I need you."

"I love you too." Chao brushed her lips with his thumb then kissed her sensuously. "And I promise I'm going to take care of you. When Lu Bu's gone for good and we kill Cao Cao I want to bring you home to Xi Liang as my wife."

"That will make everyone real happy with you." She smiled.

"I'm serious. What I said before, about you just being just a warrior….well you are a warrior and our emperor is lucky to have you. Honey, I couldn't be more proud to live the rest of my life with someone like you."

"BLAH!" Ma Dai held his stomach mockingly as Zhao Yun flitted his eyelashes.

"Oh Chao, wisk me away to your happy mountain homestead and we'll raise ponies for the children of Cheng Du!" Yun smirked

"Oh darling." Dai deepened his voice in his imitation of his cousin. "I long for the day when I may shower you with my pathetic lines and compliments! Your eyes are twinkly like the stars and your cleavage a deep chasm for my drool of love."

"You'd think fellow conspirators would be more considerate of the few moments that we actually get together." Cal sneered at Yun.

"Well at least you don't have to ride with the two of them for the next couple of months." Chao watched the boys laugh and return to their mounts.

"I miss you already." She sighed.

"Oh and sweetheart?" Chao said between kissing her neck.

"Yes?"

"You can call me Menqi, if you'd like."

"Grrr…." She playfully nibbled on his ear. "What ever you ask of me Lord Ma."

Lu Bu watched the two walk back into the crowd. He stepped out of small dwelling and scratched his chin. So Zhuge Liang was right. Damn her for trying to use him, just like Chan. She would die for this betrayal, and so would Ma Chao and Liu Bei. Conspiring against the mighty Lu Bu, trying to use him to build their army and win them victories and finally trying to rid themselves of him because they feared him. How sad that Liu Bei would assign a woman to destroy him, you'd think he would have learned how well that worked out from the Dong Zhou experience. Fine, let history repeat itself. But this time he would have men kneeling at his feet awaiting their executions. Then he would take their dynasties and conquer Wu.

Author's Notes: I had to think about what would happen if Kongming was _not_ such a nice guy or got pushed to his limits and snapped. The man had an incredible chance to take Shu as his very own when Liu Chan was entrusted to him. So I let my curiosity run away with me and suddenly ol' Zhuge is going to make Sima Yi look like angel.


	26. Separation Anxiety

Chapter 26  
  
Thanks to Guan and Sexievixen for being such loyal supporters.

Separation Anxiety

Shang felt Mystique prance around underneath her, the dock was so close. She could see her stoic brother Quan and the exuberant Ce waving to her, she was finally home.

Zhou Tai sighed on a calm Mariner and looked out over the river. They made extremely good time, thanks to his navigation skills. Shang however was very unappreciative of the incredible effort that it took to get the boat here two days ahead of schedule. He watched the men drop the plank and the young princess jump her horse onto the pier. He gently nudged his steed onto the pier and walked after her.

"Hey sis! Welcome home!" Ce caught her as she leapt off Mystique and into his arms.

"Oh I've missed you guys so much!"

"We've missed you too." Quan smiled and looked to Tai who stood watching over all of them. Finally his only friend came home.

"Sir."

"Tai, your presence has been sorely missed." Quan smiled.

"I'm too late, aren't I?" Shang asked, eyes filled with tears.

"Um…yeah. What did you want me to do, keep him on ice till you got here? " Ce asked.

"Ce." Quan shook his head; his idiot brother could be so insensitive.

"Well." Shang looked over to Quan and decided she should give him a hug too, even though they were never really all that close.

"Welcome back sister."

"Take me to his tomb." She looked up at both of them. "You did make it nice didn't you?"

"Well, yeah. If you can say stone and dead people are nice."

"It is very nice. I designed it myself and we are adding a memorial garden around it. Come I will show you." Quan shot his new emperor a look that could have frozen hell.

"Hey Tai? How's that girlfriend of yours?" Ce asked he wanted so juicy information, everything here was all drearily and death related.

"She got married before I returned. She's always been so impatient." Tai shrugged, maybe that would shake the jovial emperor.

"Oh really to who?"

"Lu Bu." Tai looked back as Ce stopped and Zhou Yu gawked at him.

"Oh…that is very bad." Zhou Yu looked to the ground, what the hell was going on in Shu?

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Cal stood next to Lu Bu as the last of the army disappeared into the distance. Now they were all alone. "Well?" She knew he was getting ready to say something; he had that smug look on his face.

"Funny thing, I heard some rumors about you and Ma Chao." He looked down at her.

"And?"

"Let me make one thing very clear to you: if you do anything to endanger my child that you are carrying you're going to suffer the same fate as Dong Zhuo."

"Fht." Cal snorted. "And how is it that I'm 'endangering' your kid?"

"By fucking that _boy_ behind my back."

"Oh honey, he's all man let me assure you of that." Cal sneered. If only Chao would have let her, he obviously had the same ideas about screwing a pregnant woman that Lu Bu had.

"Well there's not too much to worry about anymore." Lu Bu turned and mounted Red Hare. "You're all alone little girl, not even your precious Ma Chao can save you. I do sincerely hope my kid fights his way out of you tearing you up as best he can."

"Awww, darling Fengxian you're going to make me cry!" Cal yawned. "You're pathetic attempts to intimidate me are just as weak as they were back in Luo Yong."

"But sweetie, you can't even get yourself out of this mess now." Lu Bu began to pull Hare away, "Oh and pass on my apologies to our lord, I'm going to skip dinner and go school his pathetic cavalry some more."

"It will only make me look forward to sleeping next to you all the more!"

"Oh, and did I forget to mention that I've taken a concubine since you are temporarily 'disabled'?"

"Oh that's upsetting." She answered dryly and watched him ride off.

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Ma Chao lay on his back with Ares grazing around him. He couldn't stop thinking about Cal, and it was driving him out of his mind. Months were passing and they were off on these menial tasks. He and Yun had to go find a man-eating tiger that was terrorizing the locals the other day. That was the highlight of their trip. The people weren't revolting they were just concerned. As soon as the small cavalry unit appeared they relaxed. Bandits were raiding the other villages and once the bastards were eliminated, they could head home.

"I've been looking all over for you!" Dai stumbled over.

Chao looked at his younger cousin who had obviously had too much to drink. "Oh."

"Yeah.!" hiccup "Thought you could use some wine?"

"No thanks."

"You thinking about your girl?"

"Yes." Chao looked back at the stars.

"Yun thinks she's going to freak out when you try to take her home."

"Why?" Chao sat up again.

"Me thinks she likes her old job too much." Dai belched.

"She loves me Dai, she wants to change."

"So she's going to do that by killing her husband, huh?"

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"My lord?" Jiang Wei bowed before Liu Bei and waited for his response.

Cal cocked an eyebrow. Something was odd about that kid.

Liu Bei waited then realized the young man was waiting for his permission to continue. How odd, everyone else just spoke their minds. "Yes, Jiang Wei?"

"Master Zhuge wishes for me to pass on his sincerest apologies, but he will be taking dinner in his study tonight. We are working on plans for new weapons and he hopes to have the drawings ready for tomorrow. Hopefully we can begin assembling them by dawn!" Wei smiled, he was so happy with their achievements.

"Well, very well then. I look forward to seeing them." Bei smiled.

"Well, until we have all the problems worked out we have a closed trial. We wouldn't want anyone getting hurt, especially not you sir."

"Ah, I see. Well then good luck in your endeavor." Bei nodded and watched Jiang Wei hurry off.

"Well at least Chan will be joining us." He looked to Cal who was seated in her customary seat about halfway down the table.

"You mean the wild boy of Cheng Du?" Cal snickered. It would have been funnier if the others were here.

"Yes he is turning out to be something of an adventurer isn't he? I suppose it's all those stories Liang is telling him."

"At least he's not boring him with his book." Cal smiled as the servant brought the soup in.

"DAD!" Chan ran in and came to a sliding halt. "Can I skip dinner? Uncle Liang is letting me play with his models of the siege weapons! I can only play with them while he's here, please!"

"Uh…if you take your dinner with you." Bei smiled weakly as his son ran off to spend time with his 'uncle'.

"Just you and me." Cal finished off her soup and looked over in the place set for Chan. Another full bowl was stupidly left by the boy. "Well I'm taking a better seat then." She got up and moved to the seat next to her emperor and claimed the soup bowl as her own.

"Just like the old days, huh?"

"What's wrong?"

"It just feels so empty……so dismal. We just won ourselves a huge victory yet I can't seem to find the desire to be happy about it."

"Missing Shang huh?" Cal knew how he pined for her. She felt the same way. She missed Ma Chao now, more than ever. He had given her a glimpse of how very good it could be and she ached for him. She was enjoying being with Bei more, she missed the guy. They hardly ever talked anymore and she couldn't help but think of the good old days. Then again she missed all of her friends. But most of all she missed her horse. Ares had been with her longer than anyone and he was always there for her. She knew it was all for the best, she had told him to protect Ma Chao and Chao thought her spunky horse was fun to ride, but she wanted to be selfish…she wanted her horse back.

"More than ever. At least you have someone here for you in your hour of need."

Cal looked around and narrowed her eyes at him. "Who?" _Ares isn't here_….

"Well, your husband."

Cal busted out laughing and sprayed broth all over the table. "Yeah…my husband. That is a good one."

"I thought you were beginning to get along better. You seemed happy far a while." Bei sighed and played with his soup, just one more person who was miserable because of him.

"Well yes I was, but not because of that bastard." Cal grabbed his hand; the poor man blamed himself for it. "I was happy because of Ma Chao."

"Huh?"

"I love him, he loves me. Now we just have to figure out where that puts us in the grand scheme of things."

"But you're married to Lu Bu." Bei was confused.

"Well yes, to make sure he stays true to you."

"You married him just to keep him in Shu?"

"Yeah, you knew that. Right?"

"I thought there was something else there, you two were so similar. You got along alright." Bei looked at the meal when it was served, Happy Family. At least he'd have water chestnuts, that would make things better.

"Nope. Better with us than against us. And I intend to make sure he stays in line."

"And sacrifice the chance to be happy with the man you actually love?" he began to feel sick. They were all so willing to sacrifice for him, but he hadn't really given them anything in return. Just more battles and death. Was he letting everyone down? Then he looked over at Cal who was picking the water chestnuts out of her dish and dropping them on his plate. She knew how much he loved them.

"I told you I'd give my life for you; well this is just a bit more drawn out." She smiled. "I used to think that giving my life for the glory of Rome was the right thing, but then I realized it was just what I considered to be my duty. Then I fought briefly for myself, which only led to Cao Cao letting my anger fight for him. Then I met you and it all changed. I left Wei because I wanted to know what it was like to believe in something so much you wanted to give your life to protect it. I believe in you Bei, I believe you are the only one who can rule justly and wholeheartedly deserves the title Emperor. I will give everything to protect you and if that means giving up on being happy…..well so be it."

"But I don't want you to! I don't want any of you to have to…"

"Bei, we want to. All of us." Cal smiled and threw a water chestnut at his face.

"I feel like in the beginning everything was fantastic." He put the little round delicacy in his mouth after peeling it of his mustache. " We were just three men trying to right the wrongs of the world. Then you joined us and we all wanted to keep you safe from Cao Cao. Then our army began to grow…and I began to get more distant. Now I'm at the point where I only talk to you all through couriers. I don't have any time to be amongst the people I care about. I miss the days when I could drink with Fei and Yu or hunt with Yun. Or just be teased by the guys for something you said to me. I never see my son and the times I see my wife are usually ruined by arguments."

"No one holds it against you; in fact you've actually got all of us worried. We all care for you deeply and any of us would sacrifice our vitality for you. Please, don't let this get you down. We are here for you; never feel guilty for our devotion. Now are we going to eat or are you going to continue to distract me?"

"While you and I are stranded here, let's make a point of doing something every day. To keep our minds of the burdens and loneliness."

"As long as it's not fishing."

"Well I'm the emperor, aren't I? If I want to fish…." He smirked and began to transfer some pea pods to her plate. Hardly an even exchange for water chestnuts, but it was the thought that counted.

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Chao looked around and finally found the man he was hunting for. "Yun, what the hell is your problem?"

"I'm just sitting here thinking about how nice it would be to be with a woman instead of my bodyguards. I didn't realize it was so offensive." Zhao Yun poked at his small fire and turned the spareribs cooking on the spit.

"Well you obviously have been doing more than that." Chao stared at him.

"What Chao? I'm really not interesting in playing guessing games right now. What the fuck is _your_ problem?"

"Dai just said you don't think Cal will come home with me."

"So you're listening to your drunken cousin are you? Did he tell you about seeing the dancing meat buns too?" Yun turned the ribs again.

"I want to know why you're talking about Cal with my cousin and not me."

"I just mentioned it, in passing conversation. Sit down if you're going to make something of it." Yun took the ribs off the fire to cool.

"Why doesn't she want to come home with me?" Chao asked quietly.

"I never said she didn't, I just said she'd feel guilty about it. Chao, she's never had a life outside of an army before. This is all she's ever known and she's going to freak out about it."

"But she still wants to right?"

Yun had to laugh. The great Ma Chao, now a feared warrior of the three kingdoms, was all worked up about the woman he loved. "I wouldn't worry about a thing Chao. We've all been trying to get her to change her ways, ever since she joined Shu. She didn't change for any of us, she change for you."

"I don't understand."

"Look when she came back from Tong Gate she was changed. I saw it immediately. Then we talked and I couldn't believe it was the same woman who tortured a guy back at Chi Bi. She was in love with you and she suddenly found a reason not to seek death, if you will. She finally began to think about her future and she got scared. Chao, we're talking about a girl who was talking shit to Lu Bu the moment she met him. She was never afraid, but then she decided to change for you. And that hit her like a stone wall. She realized she didn't know how to be what you'd deem acceptable. She was doing very well with her new fighting style, but then she saw Cao Cao and he just threw her for a loop. She wanted him dead, but he's too good with a sword and she was no match for him. Then Cal realized she was in a shitload of trouble if she lost to him."

"But she wouldn't have lost if it was on her terms."

"Yeah. She wasn't comfortable with the images of the new life she was trying to create. She'd be vulnerable and bored; however I think she was jealous of Shang and Ying. They were so happy and she wanted to know that too, and she finally settled on you."

"Yes and I blew it."

"You just triggered her self defense mechanism. She got hurt and she fell back on what she knew. Lu Bu gave her the opportunity to protect Liu Bei and she jumped on it. She liked Lu Bu, they really did get along well, but she never trusted him. It was a good deal, she didn't have to be alone and she could do her job. If he turned out to be a loyal officer, well then all the better. But if not, then she'd see it before anyone else and have it taken care of. Then you fell in love with her and now she wants to be with you."

"So why won't she come back with me."

"Chao, she'd been through a lot. She knows what the perfect wife would be and it's not her."

"Well the first man who says that will die where he stands."

"Then tell her that." Yun smiled. "Just remember that you have to be careful because she'll protect you with her life. Never forget that." He handed Chao a few spareribs.

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Zhou Tai rowed his little boat out into the Chang Jiang to go check his crab traps. The excuse gave him a welcome reprieve from Sun Quan's irritating whining about his brother. Sun Ce was doing a good job so far; morale was high, the people were pleased, the officers loved him and the only two people who were at all unhappy were his two siblings. Quan was jealous, he hated that his brother was so very popular and that Ce was about to tear across China making a name for himself. Ce wanted to expand Wu, it was the least he could do for his father. Tai knew the young ruler could do it too, with the same fervor he did everything else. Then there was Sun Shang Xiang, the empress of Shu, out of place and miserable. Tai felt for her, the poor girl wanted to return home to the man she loved and the kingdom she helped him create, but her family guilted her into staying longer. He too found himself wanting to return to Shu, Ying was all he ever thought about anymore. She was haunting his dreams as well, asking him if he was ever going to come for her and save her from a loveless marriage. He knew that that was simply his own mind contributing to his dismay; she would never leave Zhuge Liang. What the hell was he going to do?

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"My lord, you look so very sad." Zhuge Liang cocked his head sympathetically

"I am missing my wife a bit today." Liu Bei shook it off.

"Perhaps I could give you a special tea to help. It is something I myself find very comforting."

"Well…."

"Bullshit!" Cal strolled in and looked happy. "All he needs is some time out by the river with a pole."

"No spear, bow or sword?" Liu Bei asked her curiously. She was impatient and the fishing pole was of no use to her. Huang Zhong and Wei Yan had both tried to teach her archery by shooting at fish. That went so well that Huang Zhong threw up his hands in disgust and stormed off screaming about life being too short. Then Zhao Yun and Ma Chao tried to school her on the use of a spear, hoping it would get her way from the more 'personal' kills with her rapier and knives. Yun's spear ended up broken and Chao just determined it was best to leave her with something she was more comfortable with. Then the day had come when Cal herself had created the new sport of sword fishing and Liu Bei would never forget it as long as he lived. Frustrated with the serene activity of sitting on a rock barefoot talking about politics with her lord she threw the pole down and threw the bait in the shallows. Drawing her weapon she stood still as an oak tree trunk and waited for the fish to come, then she unleashed her musou on them and collected the punctured fish that floated to the surface. Ever since that day, Liu Bei refused to take her out with him. Then they would argue about swordfishing being a real sport and he would never get to go out because someone would have a crisis that would need to be resolved.

"Since you're down, I'll agree to use a pole." She crossed her arms in annoyance. "Just because I like you so much."

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"Xuande, I miss you so much." Shang looked off her balcony to the west. He was out there, miss her too. She began to cry. Why had she been so stubborn about the children issue? All they ever did was fight about it anymore. Now she wished she could have a chance to say she was sorry for the whole thing, and it was her fault she took everything as an insult. She had even found occasions to begin the argument, just because he thought he might bring it up later in the evening and ruin the day. _Shang, you are so stupid_. Her favorite man in the whole world and she couldn't be there for him when he needed her. He was getting beaten down by the responsibilities of creating a new dynasty. He was even worried that he was betraying the Han. If he was claiming these lands for his own, then what about restoring the Han? She wanted him to believe that the Han was dead and if he didn't take control China was doomed. How could she convince him if she was in Jian Ye and he in Cheng Du? _Just a few more weeks, then I can head home._

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"What are you doing?" Zhuge Liang snapped at Lu Bu when he came around the corner.

"You sniveling little…"

"Sorry. I did not mean to take such a tone with you my lord." Liang bowed briefly and saw that Lu Bu's irritation had subsided. "My attempt to drug or king has been thwarted by your wife. Apparently you have angered her enough to make her want to spend every waking moment protecting Liu Bei."

"So? Too much fro you to handle?" Lu Bu waited, this man was always so slow to get to the point.

"Well, in order for our plan to be a success you need to stop insulting your wife and pretend like you're actually content with your current orders. Now if you could see your way to trying to be nice to her it may make it easier for me to get some time alone with Liu Bei. Perhaps you are missing an opportunity. You married her because she had some importance to you as an assassin, correct?"

"Yeah."

"Well then try and win her over. She's not that different than you, you saw how much she enjoyed torturing that man. She is isolated and vulnerable right now, it is perhaps the only chance you will have."

Lu Bu nodded. "I can do that."

"Good, I will even make it easier for you; I will talk to her as well."

Lu Bu laughed. "Yeah, she's more inclined to listen to me."

"Have faith my lord." Zhuge Liang swished off to talk to the annoying bitch.

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"Alright Sima Yi, what is your plan?" Cao Cao sighed and poured some honey in his tea.

"We have located Diao Chan, my lord."

"Well I always wanted to…"

"No my lord, I have another idea in mind. I'd like to recruit her as an officer and use her to take care of this little Lu Bu problem we're having."

"Oh."

"It's actually a brilliant plan if I may say so." Sima Yi smirked.

"That's why you're here." Cao looked up at him. "Are you going to tell me?"

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"Cal, a word please." Liang brushed past her and into the study.

Cal looked to Liu Bei and crossed her eyes. "So much for chess."

"You have two pieces left; dear and only have one pawn of mine. He is saving you." Liu Bei looked over the board. She hated the game, it was obvious, but if he could get her to care a little about strategy maybe she'd have a chance as a general.

"Yes, oh great Kongming? You better not want me to kill anyone." Cal sighed and sat in the big chair, it was so comforting against her aching back.

"How exactly are you keeping Lu Bu restrained if you are doing your damnedest to piss him off?" Liang spun around and stared at her.

"That happened to be how our fragile relationship works. We insult, offend and attack each other until we grudgingly alleviate our frustrations with sex. See simple."

"But he is an idiot. He won't touch you while you're with child."

"I know it's stupid, but he thinks he'll hurt his kid. Poke him in the head with his giant dick. I tell him to get over himself. That it's not possible but he doesn't listen."

"Well his is getting unsettled by it." Liang looked out the window. "I suggest you try and be nicer to him if you are trying to keep him around. We do need him, despite all the cocky attitudes."

"Yeah." Cal got up. "I suppose you also have another suggestion."

"Yes, I have made it easy for you. I have calmed him down and convinced him it is because of your hormones, which gives you the chance to…."

"Be the perfect wife, got it."

"He is very excited about his baby, maybe you should be enthused too. It's arrival is in less than four months, right?"

"Yeah. I'll keep him around, don't worry." Cal got up and left.

"I'm not worried in the least." Liang said to himself after she left. It was all so very easy.

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Lu Bu wandered around the bedroom looking for his wife. She had to be here somewhere. He noticed the wind blowing the curtains around the balcony and moved over to investigate. There she lay asleep in a little ball, until he crushed a plate under his foot.

Cal sprung up and whipped out her knife and tried to focus while standing up. She failed miserably on the standing issue and only managed to get one knee under her. "Oh, what are you doing here?"

"I felt bad about the way I've been treating you. Considering we're going to be parents and all, I thought I'd try a little harder to be nice."

"Oh." She let him lift her off the ground and brush her hair back.

"I thought I could make it up to you." He smiled.

"How?" She asked knowing he was trying to be a tease.

"Come and see." He walked back inside and sat down at the desk.

Cal cuiously wandered over to him and looked over his shoulder. "Are we painting together?"

"No. I know you can't write so I'm going to teach you." He grinned.

"I can write just fine, just not in this fancy flowy painting way."

"Yes I've seen your scratch lines that represent your native language; you could so with a calligraphy lesson or two. Might make you more refined." He laughed at his own joke and then patted his leg. "Sit."

"You woke me up for this?" She looked at him annoyed.

"You sleep too much and this is the only time we can do this. Come on it won't be that bad. Or are you afraid you might enjoy it?"

"Very well." She sighed and sat down on his leg.

"You are getting heavy. Here just sit on my lap, it will be more comfortable for both of us.

Cal shook her head and did as he asked. "Thanks." She said dryly.

"Oh now, I'll begin with the alphabet." He said almost too cheerfully.

Cal rested her head on his shoulder and watched. He was enjoying it and she suspected it was because she found it degrading. She knew how to read and write, in more than just Latin. But the fancy letters of Chinese were a bit too delicate for her to master. Someone always ended up laughing and showing all the people they could find, and it was at her expense. His smooth deep voice began to lull her back to sleep and she couldn't help but find his bulky shoulder very inviting. Slowly she fell back asleep.

"Ok you try." He looked down at her and realized she was sound asleep and his efforts were for nothing. Somehow he couldn't be mad; she really was a cute little thing. He gently placed a kiss on her temple and she smiled wrapping her arms around him and burying her head into his neck. "Come on then, let's at least use this nice bed." He picked her and took her over to the bed and lay down with her. She was his wife after all, and the mother of his child, maybe he could get her to love him. He sure as hell was never going to see Chan again, she was long gone, maybe he should enjoy what he had. He pulled her closer and nodded off to sleep.


	27. The Coming Storm

Chapter 27

The Coming Storm

Cal let her eyes flutter open and for a moment she thought she was still dreaming. Why else would she be in bed next to a man? She looked up and was instantly disappointed that it wasn't Ma Chao. What the hell was Lu Bu doing here? Then she remembered last night and the ridiculously phony interaction that had occurred. He was trying his best to distract her or win her over. Either way, his ploy was easily seen though. It was a shame he had to be so ambitious, Lu Bu actually had the potential to be a good man. With a yawn she rolled out of his grasp and left him sleeping and began to think about Zhuge Liang. Something had gotten into him lately and she couldn't quite put her finger on it. It all started that day when he showed off his new fan and she sensed a change. It was probably just her imagination. She got dressed and looked back at Lu Bu. He was trying to use this time away from the rest of the army to manipulate her and it was turning out to be more amusing than anything. It only made her want Chao all the more. She never had to be on guard with him and she never had to doubt what he had to say. She shook her head, no reason to start getting depressed this early in the morning; it was time for breakfast with Liu Bei.

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Liu Bei looked out the window and stared off to the east. Was she ever coming home? Maybe she decided to stay; after all she was a Sun. He sighed heavily; it was time to go meet Cal for breakfast. At least there was one person who would never abandon him. Slowly he wandered over to the mirror to shave and stared at himself. He was beginning to look old; maybe it was time to get rid of the facial hair. He had only grown it to stop everyone from teasing him about looking so young. Maybe it was time for a change….

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"Oh my god! Liu Chan you grew up so fast!" Cal looked at her emperor and started to laugh.

"Funny." Liu Bei felt his chin-it was odd not to have anything there.

"My lord?" Zhuge Liang entered the room and looked at him quizzically.

"I just felt like trying something different." Liu Bei growled.

"Oh, you're so cute. Just like you used to be when you were single." Cal batted her eyelashes.

"That's not really as funny when you're five months pregnant." Bei waved his chopsticks at her. "I also remember when your hair was shorter. That was nice."

"I'd actually have to care again." Cal sat down at tried to take some bacon off his plate. He lifted her fingers away with the chopsticks.

"Sir, I believe our messengers will be arriving today. We should have a report from Yue Ying and Pang Tong."

"It's about time." Liu Bei smiled. Finally they'd be heading home!

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Lu Bu woke up and looked around. Something in his scan of the room was way off, oh, it was Zhuge Liang. "What the hell are you doing in my bedroom?"

"You did so well with your wife last night that she's now making fun of you with Liu Bei. Good job."

Lu Bu sat up and snorted. "I didn't need to do it overnight."

"Well it would have been nice if you weren't so obviously faking it."

"Look, I don't need you to tell me how to handle my wife, if anything you should be asking my advice."

"Ha." Liang stood and fanned himself. Then he looked over the gigantic warrior and slyly asked, "You want to keep her don't you?"

"Yeah."

"I am trying to make you emperor, where exactly does that bitch fit in?"

"If I can…."

"You can't. She loves Ma Chao and is mildly amused by your attempts to be kind to her. Come on Lu Bu, you can't let yourself be drawn into her plan. She'll use you, we already know that."

"Yeah, you're right." He shook his head. "I want my kid to have a mother."

"We're going to take over China, you can have any woman you want as your child's mother." Liang looked over at the man and watched his eyes dart over to the map. Yes, remember your ridiculous dreams of conquering the world.

"Yeah." He said thoughtfully. Any woman he wanted….just like he had told her in the beginning. Use her to get what he wanted then toss her aside. They didn't fit anyway; too bad they had to ruin a good friendship with marriage. Ah well, something's had to be destroyed in order to gain what you wanted.

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"So, what do you want to bitch about today?" Liu Bei smiled as she sat down beside him with her pole.

"My husband's an idiot."

"We talk about this everyday."

"Last night he came into the bedroom, woke me up and tried to teach me how to read. What the hell is up with that?"

"You mean you weren't instantly won over by that? After months of him verbal abusing you and ignoring you?" Bei smirked. "I thought that would be every woman's dream."

"I fell asleep when he reached the fourth or fifth letter and then woke up this morning with his arms around me!"

"Maybe he's beginning to like you." Bei laughed and scared a fish off. "How does he do so well on the battlefield when he makes so stupid moves in conversation? Honestly, does he think you're not going to be put off by him suddenly being nice to you?"

"Apparently." She looked at her line. "Does that mean I've finally caught a fish?"

"No it means you snagged my line." Bei grabbed her pole. "Haven't you learned anything yet?"

"Yes." She pushed him into the river and watched him pop up with a scowl. "The emperor is always right. Now fix my line oh kind and gentle leader of the people!"

"If you weren't pregnant I'd pitch your disrespectful ass across the river!"

Cal kicked some water at him. "So, write Shang a letter yet?"

"I can't do that; she needs to take as much time as she needs to be with her family. I can't demand she come home because I miss her."

"Did you ever think that she's being guilted into staying? I wouldn't put that past that bastard Zhou Yu or even Sun Ce. They're a very tight knit group."

"Maybe I will send her a letter." Bei mused.

"Send Lu Bu, since he's so set on being friendly! I bet he'd love a trip on a boat!"

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"Oh it is so nice to see Liu Bei send us such strong soldiers to protect us!" One teenage girl sighed dreamily at Zhao Yun.

"And such gallant ones too." Another girl smiled and bent over a little to show Ma Chao her ample chest.

Chao gave Yun an annoyed look and tried to move Ares through the crowd. The stubborn little horse was too busy accepting treats from the women of the village. "Well then we should be on our way, there are bandits that must fall to our blades."

"Yeah, we have to protect you ladies…" Yun pulled away from an older woman who was groping his bicep.

"Oh General Zhao, please allow us to cook you dinner!" the woman winked at him.

"And you must be tired! You must want to sleep." The first teenager's eyes glowed with excitement.

"And you must be dusty! Let us draw you a bath! The second smiled bashfully at Ma Chao.

"Thank you for your kindness ladies, but we must be going." Chao pulled on the reins sharply, giving Ares a jerk on the bit to get his attention back.

"Yes, we must do our duty." Yun bowed respectfully and felt the older woman's hand contact with his ass. He hopped up on Tsunami to protect his vulnerable rear from the assasult.

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Yue Ying watched the prisoners walk towards each other. How annoying that she had to do this just to get Chen Shi back. He wasn't even that important! "You ready with that volley Zhong?"

"Yup!" Huang Zhong had his hand raised and was waiting for Chen Shi to cross the lines back to his own camp. "Can't we just cut them both down. This Chen Shi guy is a pussy."

"Accidents happen." Ying shrugged. "Might as well see how fast that dumb Cao brat can run."

"HEY CAO XIONG! Better run back to daddy faster you dickless fuck!" Zhong turned and let his hand fall "FIRE!"

"Your insults are always so enlightened." Ying chuckled and watched Chen Shi duck behind a crate.

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Chao closed his eyes as he heard the giggling teenagers approach. "Run Yun, Run."

"Too late." Yun sighed.

"Oh our valiant heroes!" The first girl smiled. "I'm Luo."

"And I'm Mi." The girl smiled at Ma Chao.

"Ladies." Yun suddenly remembered a time when Sun Shang Xiang was this flirty.

"We were hoping you'd accept a gift." Luo smiled.

"Fried wontons, we made them ourselves!" Mi handed her package to Ma Chao.

"Thank you. You are too kind." Chao moaned as the peppy one sat down next to him.

"And for you General Zhao." Luo moved in towards him and handed him the package, 'accidentally' touching his hand.

"Thank you Luo." Yun looked to Chao who was listening to a story about the girl's pet laying hen.

"Actually I don't find chickens to be that smart." Chao inched away from her.

"Oh but Miss Cluck is so smart!" Mi tugged on his sleeve "I'll show you."

"That's alright…..General Zhao and I have to discuss our strategies for tomorrow." Chao watched the girl frown.

"Yeah!" Yun smiled. Chao was a quick thinker despite being dumbfounded by Cal most of the time. "We actually should be getting to that before it's too late."

"Then we'll bring you tea!" Luo jumped up. "Come on Mi, let's get them some of Mama's special tea!"

"Okay. Will you at least share one cup with us. Please. With all the men gone to war we so rarely get to talk to any real gentlemen." Mi batted her eyelashes and smiled perkily.

"Sure." Chao relented; it would be only one drink. He couldn't have them mingling with the men, it would only end up with some poor bastard getting executed.

"YEAH!" Mi and Luo clapped hands and ran off.

"Sucker." Yun tasted the wonton then hacked it up. "Oh my god, they must have put a cat in this."

Chao let his curiosity get the best of him and tasted it. "It kind of tastes like snakefish."

Yun and Chao smiled, thinking the same thought. "Yes, we will have to take a trip with Wei Yan one of the days." Yun snickered. "Well bring your new wife, so she can get jealous."

"I don't think Cal should be jealous, I'm afraid of what might happen." Chao began to think of that tragedy.

"Oh I was thinking about Mi there, you did invite her back after all." Yun laughed as Chao threw three fried snakefish wontons at him.

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"Am I interrupting something?" Lu Bu stopped Red Hare next to the river where Liu Bei was cursing at the fishing line.

"Aren't you always?" Cal mumbled and Liu Bei chuckled.

Lu Bu narrowed his eyes, "What was that?" She said it so low that he couldn't hear it.

"Nothing darling. You come to fish with us?" Cal smiled and tilted her head back to look at him.

"I though we could take a ride together." He huffed and leaned over Hare's neck, trying to look seductive.

Cal laughed and looked back at Liu Bei. He was smiling but didn't look back at her, knowing she's say something to make him laugh. "But Fengxian, you only have one horse."

"Well Chao stole yours and I thought it might be nice to spend some time together. So I thought we'd share. Since you're so fat you can take the saddle and I'll ride behind it." Bu jumped from the saddle and waited.

"Well you talked me into it." She rolled her eyes and mouthed to Lui Bei 'SOOOOO Romantic!', then she turned to her husband. "I haven't forgotten how to ride."

"I want to help." He lifted her up into the saddle before she could protest.

Cal resisted the urge to kick Hare into a gallop as he swung up behind her. "Where are we going? Xia Pi?"

"Funny." He mumbled. "It's a surprise."

"Yeah, I love surprises! Like this one time when the Legions threw me a surprise after I killed this Senator. Man they just busted in and started hollering and 'joking' that they were going to execute me. Hahahah." She felt him wrap his arm around her waist.

"I'm not trying to kill you, relax." Lu Bu grabbed the reins with his other hand and began to move Hare towards the woods.

"Oh, maybe there's an ambush party! I love those! And me without a weapon, how lucky that I have my handsome and powerful husband behind me."

"I'm not trying to kill you!" he snapped as they walked away.

"Promise? Oh wait, that word means nothing to you."

"Grrrrr."

Liu Bei threw the poles on the rock. He figured they'd just come back and Cal would want to make fun of her favorite man again. It was good she was so amused by all of this, and he was glad she finally decided to let him in on it. He wanted to admonish her and tell her how important the bonds on marriage were, but if she was right Lu Bu was up to something. And he knew that in this current situation, he was very vulnerable. He felt safe with her around and with an advance warning he could protect them both.

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"Tea time! Luo smiled and trotted into the tent.

"Don't you know how to knock?" Yun stood up and glared at Chao, it was his fault they were back.

"And almond cookies!" Mi ran in and handed the entire plate to Ma Chao with dewy eyes.

"And their protective mother." The older woman from before walked into the tent and smiled at the men. "Generals. I just need to chaperone."

"Well this isn't anything official." Yun protested.

"Well it appears to me that you are both courting my daughters. Why else would they be in your tent having tea and cookies?"

Yun growled at Chao. "Yeah why, General Ma?"

"Well……So you can both meet my cousin, Ma Dai. He is looking to take a wife."

"Yes! And our fellow general, Wei Yan, who is off fighting for our lord is also without a wife." Yun smiled. Good job Chao!

"I do believe you both are available as well. My lords." The annoying lady answered.

"But you'll really like Dai, Mi. He is younger than I am and an accomplished general as well." Chao looked to Yun. "I'll go fetch him."

"And I'll help you look!" Yun volunteered.

"You're so funny." Luo hung on his arm and dopily rubbed her check on his exposed bicep.

"But he can't be nearly as handsome as you, General. No offense to your cousin." Mi smiled demurely.

"Thank you…however…"

"Generals, how you been leading my daughters on? What scoundrels you are thinking that my precious daughters would compromise their….."

"No, No, No." both men protested.

"I'd compromise." Whispered Luo. "I'd give you everything."

"Oh God." Yun looked at Chao, there had to be a way out of this.

"Dai!" Chao screamed.

"At your service, cousin." Dai stumbled in, completely drunk again.

"Awww..." Chao rubbed his face and felt Mi rub his hand. He had to be drunk now?

"I will not let a worthless drunk even look at my babies! Out you vile thing!" She poked him with her fan.

"Bitch." Dai stumbled back out and disappeared.

"As I was saying…."

"No I am sorry we led you to believe that we were at all interested in your daughters." Yun realized that it didn't sound as good coming out as it did in his mind.

"Why you fiend!"

"Actually what he meant to say was that I am actually in love with a woman in Cheng Du. I'm sorry I led you on Mi. I meant no harm. I didn't realize how very much I missed her and well.....sorry." Chao figured it would be a good way out. Yun was pissed, he needed an excuse.

"I can make you forget about her." Mi offered.

"What about you General Zhao?" Luo asked, "Are you free?"

"No. I prefer concubines to wives."

"I can be a concubine!"

"Me too!"

"Me three!" their mother added.

"Oh shit." Yun looked to Chao as the women began to grope him.

"Ares…." Chao whispered through the tent. "Ferro!(l. Strike)" Chao hoped the only command he remembered would help. He heard the pissed off nicker and took it as an acceptance of the task. Then the back of the tent got punched in and the girls screamed. "Run ladies, we'll protect you. Go quick it must be the enemy!"

"AHHHHH!"

"Ares! No." The horse kept striking and Chao looked to Yun.

"Ares! Satis! (L. Enough)" Yun hollered and the horse stopped. "God Chao, can't you control your girlfriend's horse? How do you ever expect to make a marriage work?"

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Cal looked around at the small meadow in the dense forest and then down at her husband who was offering his hand to help her down. "Real quiet…almost like a graveyard."

"I'm not trying to kill you!" He screamed and the birds flew out of the trees.

She smiled and let him help her down. He made a point of sliding her down his chest and placing her on the ground as close as he could to himself. "What something?"

"Is it a crime to kiss you if I'm not Ma Chao?"

"Fengxian, what the hell are you up to? You can't honestly believe I'm buying this act?"

"Cal, we used to get along."

"Yeah when you didn't own me or have your spawn growing inside of me!"

"Then you're not going to believe that I think you'd make a good mother."

"Ha! I don't even think I will. Hell I think the kid has a better chance with Lotus than me."

Lu Bu turned around and looked to the tree line. "You want him to have a good life, don't you?"

"What's all this 'him' shit? Why is everyone so convinced it will be a boy?"

"Pang Tong said that you're carrying it low and that means it will be a boy."

Cal looked over him and suddenly felt overwhelmingly bad for him. He was without anyone and she was all he really had. "Fengxian…."

"I want him to be more than someone's vassal."

"There you go, delusions of grandeur." She walked over to him and pulled him to face her. With a gentle hand she ran it over his face. "Why can't you just be happy? Why must you want everything?"

"You'd never understand. I am the best. There is no one who can match me in anything on the battlefield. I want what I deserve."

"I once was the best too." She left her hand fall. "I was the best Rome had. I interrogated in Gaul, spied in Alexandria, murdered in Rome. I would go unnoticed, complete my objective and gather as much information as possible. When I would return they would have a man's head, his vital paperwork, his home demolished, and the numbers and strength of his forces. I started when I was nine and by the time I was thirteen I was the best they had. While others were eating porridge in the barracks I was snacking on grapes with the generals. Sure I spent a lot of my time with the men, training, but it was obvious what I was to them and I was ostracized. Fine by me, I made shitloads of money, got expensive gifts and even got to go to parties-when duty called. Apparently I was too good and they began to fear me and my potential." Cal shook her head. "I know what it's like to be unbeatable."

"But you were content to be used." Lu Bu sighed. "I want so much more, for us."

"Us? When did there become an us?" she asked.

He put his hand on her stomach and looked into her eyes. "I want him to have all of this."

"Oh, when you got me pregnant by switching out Pang Tong's remedy with something else." She pushed his hand off annoyed.

"I had to do something to secure your loyalty for a while. Until I could convince you of what I could give you."

"Since when do you care about me?"

He shrugged. "We're so very similar."

"I'm not buying this!" She hollered.

"Why?"

"Because I'm not Diao Chan and you're not Ma Chao. Come on, Fengxain, we don't love each other. Why are you pretending? We can never be devoted to one another. I genuinely like you, you're a good guy but when this shit gets in your head…..you become a villain. You cannot rule over this land because you do not care about it. You only care about yourself."

"I care about my family, and that is why I should have it. To give my son something when I die."

"That is where we will always be divided. The land must be ruled by someone who cares about it and its people."

"Just because you are afraid…."

"I'm not afraid, I just don't want it. I don't have the need to be in control. You remind me of Cao Cao when you're like this."

"No reason to get vicious."

"I'm serious." She pulled him closer, "Dammit why must you be such a bastard! You think you can lead China into another age of prosperity and happiness?"

"I will expand China…."

"That's not what the people want. They want their men back and the land to be riddled with farmlands not battlefields. They want this war to end, unifying this country and ending the strife."

Lu Bu took her hands, "And what do you want?"

"I want to change. I don't want to be so quick to kill. I don't want to look at a man and think about ripping out his beating heart and suffocating him with it" She looked into his eyes. "And you're thinking that that means I am of no use to you anymore."

"Yeah. You shouldn't let a talent like yours go to waste. You were the best, you still are."

"Talent? More like curse. It plagues me, I can't get rid of it and trying only makes it easier to slip back into my bad habits."

"Then we are enemies? Because you do not have faith in me?"

"Have you ever thought about compromising?"

"No."

"Same here." She pulled away from him, "Let's go home."

"Where will this put our son?"

"Only time will tell." She mounted Red Hare.

"You will regret this."

"I regret so much where you're concerned."

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"My lord, good news!" Zhuge Liang busted in to the throne room and Liu Chan raced over to him.

"Uncle Liang!" Chan smiled and grabbed his robes.

"Hello, Chan!" Liang scooped up the boy. "Yue Ying has succeeded in the prisoner exchange at Mt Ding Jun! We have Chen Shi back."

"Excellent." Liu Bei furrowed his eyebrows, why did Chan like the strategist more than his own father now?

"And she and Huang Zhong chased off Xiahou Yuan and Zhang He. Ying expects them to regroup with Cao Cao and strike at Jie Ting. She has already been in communication with Pang Tong. I believe I should go and assist."

"Well with Ying, Tong and Ma Su, so we really need another strategist there?" Liu Bei was alarmed by his insistence.

"I know how you feel about Ma Su sir, and I wish to prove that he is reliable." Liang smiled.

Liu Bei got up and paced. He never did trust Ma Su completely, he thought the man to be somewhat inept. Liang pushed the man relentlessly, insisting that the younger strategist was a good man just a bit slow. Now he wanted a chance to prove his emperor wrong.

"Another reason is Sima Yi will finally show his face at this battle and I am anxious to see his skill."

"Ah so that is it." Liu Bei felt relieved, "Then go ahead. Maybe you should call back the cavalry units; they may be of use to you."

"Excellent idea my lord. Thank you."

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"I'm going home Ce!" Shang screamed at threw her Chakram at him.

"Okay! No need to throw dangerous objects!" Sun Ce ducked and let the Chakram lodge itself in the wall.

"I want my husband! And you have no right to keep me from him!"

"Okay! Go back to him them!" Ce turned and shook his head at Zhou Yu. "Sooner the better."

"What was that?"

"Nothin' sis."

"Please give this letter to Zhuge Liang." Zhou Yu handed Shang the scroll. "It is vital information."

"Then shouldn't it go to Xuande?"

"You need not worry him with it. If he needs to know then Zhuge Liang will tell him, otherwise it may not need to be in the back of his mind. Okay?" Yu asked and Shang nodded.

"Alright." She didn't really care, she just wanted her man.

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"Hey, a word." Cal pushed past Zhuge Liang and into his study.

"I'm not amused by this." He pushed the door closed.

"Look, Lu Bu's up to something and I'm not really sure if he's going to wait till everyone comes home to make his move."

"Oh?" He cocked an eyebrow at her. DAMMIT!

"He's just mood swing after mood swing. He made a last ditch effort to win me over, and now he's perfectly aware of where I stand."

"You idiot! Can't you just lie to him?"

"I owe him the truth. He deserves that much at least." She looked to the furious strategist. "Look, I'm afraid for Liu Bei's safety. If you all go off on this wonder quest to make Ma Su look good then we're here all by ourselves, with him."

"You want me to send Ma Chao to protect you?" He fanned himself. "Amongst other things."

"I'm serious! He very well may be ready to make his move!"

"Fine I'll send Zhao Yun; he seems to be the almighty protector of Shu. Hell I'll even give you Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, they're off scouting the whereabouts of Sun Ce's army."

"No, don't pull them off of that."

"They're hading for Nan territory and are going to try to beat Sun Ce to it. We could use that land." Liang looked over the map and pointed to the area so that she could see it.

"I said don't pull them off of it!"

"Well thank you for your permission." _You will have to be taken care of before I leave….._"I will leave Jiang Wei here and send you the old man. How is that? I'll be able to intercept Ying on her way to Jie Ting. Then you can have an archer unit, will that be good?"

"Whatever." She threw her hands up and began to walk out.

"You look rattled. Perhaps some of my special tea…."

"Fuck your goddamned tea! Stop trying to push that shit on us." She stormed out and missed his furious scowl.


	28. The Battle of Mt Jie Ting

Chapter 28

The Battle of Mt. Jie Ting

"I'm drugging her, end of story!" Zhuge Liang slammed his fist on the table.

"And what will happen to my kid?" Lu Bu balled his fist.

"Nothing, she'll just sleep a lot. Dammit Lu Bu did you have to be so transparent? What on earth are you doing? You know she's loyal to Liu Bei!"

"Her loyalties change a lot." Lu Bu looked out the window and saw his wife. "Give me one more chance."

"You can't be serious. No wonder Diao Chan had such an easy time leading you around." He shook his head.

"Watch your mouth." Lu Bu sneered.

Zhuge Liang bowed respectfully and then narrowed his eyes. _So Diao Chan is the one and only still_.

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"Morning cousin." Dai squinted through hung-over eyes.

"You are absolutely useless." Chao snatched the scroll he offered.

"I brought you the scroll, why are you so pissy?"

"Last night we tried to get you a wife, but you had to be a slobbering idiot." Chao read the scroll and his eyebrows raised.

"Good news?" Yun asked leading Tsunami.

"Ready for a quick getaway?" Chao looked up at him with his fingers wrapped tightly around the reins.

"Well Dai's here, we can always sacrifice him."

"What are you two talking about?" Dai sat down and poured some tea.

"I'll tell you on the way to Jie Ting." Chao's face lit up and he handed the orders to Yun.

"Oh thank god." Yun looked over the scroll. "Blah blah blah, Jie Ting, blah blah, Prime Minister? What?"

"Well find out when we get there. Hey Dai, why don't you stay here and protect the camp from the locals?" Chao patted him on the back. "Yun and I will round up the boys and get ready to move out."

"Thanks, that's really nice of you." Dai smiled. How thoughtful his favorite cousin was being this morning. "This is really good tea!"

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"Oh isn't this wonderful." Yue Ying read the message the courier had delivered. She looked to Huang Zhong and cleared her throat. "_Yue Ying_, _I will see to the battle at Jie Ting personally. Please advise Pang Tong on your arrival. My orders for battle formation are enclosed. Send Huang Zhong back to protect Cheng Du in my absence. I will be along shortly. – Zhuge Liang, Prime Minister_."

"Prime Minister? What's up with that bullshit?" Zhong spit some chicken into the fire.

"Maybe we all get titles when we get home." Yue Ying shrugged and threw the note in the fire.

"I want to be 'Glorious Aged General, Head of Pointy Projectile Units and Revered Insultitian."

"Insultitian." Ying laughed.

"It is a word if Liu Bei decrees it." Zhong waved his drumstick at her. "So shall we write back?"

"Maybe we can ask why he suddenly thinks his unit was actually protecting Liu Bei."

"Wonder how Cal's doing. She must be ready to have that kid soon." Zhong shook his head. "We're not going to make it back in time."

"No were not. She swears up and down it will be easy, it's what her people are built for. But I'm still worried."

"It's not the kid I'm worried about it that bastard husband of hers."

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"Want to go for a ride?" Lu Bu stopped Red Hare in front of his wife and looked down.

"Given up on the flattery?" She asked with a grin.

"You don't like it so why should I bother?"

"I like it when it's genuine." She gave him her hand and let him lift her up into the saddle.

"You're getting close." He rubbed her stomach and felt his child kick at him.

"Yeah and he's getting more violent, must be your kid after all." She rode on in silence thinking about Chao. Why was he taking so long to come home?

"Come on." He put her on the ground and walked back over to the clearing and sat down.

"What's wrong?" She sat down and rested her head on his leg, for some reason she was really tired.

"Why won't you accept my offer?"

"What offer?"

"To join my army. I'll give you ….."

"No. I am not betraying Liu Bei." She looked up at her husband and felt like she should try and save him. "Fengxian, please, don't do this. For one in your life, stay loyal to your lord."

"So now you care? Look, I know you love Ma Chao, I'm not trying to oust him. But what the hell are you going for? Honestly can you see yourself as his wife?"

"Well…."

"He's prefect of a huge province, he'll go home and have to govern his people. Where do you fit in? How can you handle his household and assist him in his diplomacy efforts? Cal you're really out of your league on that one."

"You want to be emperor, where do I fit in there?"

"I'll be more of a warlord, you fit in perfectly." He brushed her hair from her face. Lu Bu knew he wasn't winning, she just didn't believe he really cared for her, in actuality he didn't. The fact of the matter was he liked having her around because she was his only friend and she always spoke her mind. It made him think things through better. If he was going to take over Shu with Zhuge Liang he needed someone who could match the crafty bastard, and it definitely wasn't him.

She looked away. What exactly was a prefect anyway? Was it some kind of governor? Did Chao really have to return home and rule over his lands, if so, how did she ever expect to help him? Her solution to everything was 'kill', and that made it obvious that she didn't belong out in Xi Liang with the man she loved. He spirits began to fall, where the hell was he? She needed him now; Lu Bu was beginning to make sense. She yawned. "I don't belong in any position of power, I have no compassion."

Lu Bu took a chance and kissed her. "Stay with me."

Cal was overwhelmingly confused. What the hell was going on? "Don't do this, please. I don't want to have to hunt you down. You can be happy here, I'll see to that. Why can't you just let it go?"

He looked at her watery eyes and suddenly realized she was not being as forceful with her statements, it was more of a plea. Zhuge Liang already drugged her, that bastard. "Cal, I want it all."

"I want to be done with it all. I want to let Chao take care of me." She sighed and stood, wobbled a bit, and he pulled her onto his knee. She sighed and put her head on his shoulder.

"You're through?"

"I'm tired of this, I want to know what real people get to enjoy before I die." Cal felt uninhibited and the words just came pouring out of her mouth. Sentences he didn't even realize she had been thinking.

"I can't love you like I did Chan, but I can take care of you if you'll serve me like you do Liu Bei. We can go back to the way it used to work."

"Fengxian, if you stay I'll stay with you. Don't leave. We need you, you're really good. Cao Cao needs to die and we can't do that if we have to fight on another front with you. I like you, you're a good guy, but you just want everything you can't have."

"Yes and I'm going to take it." He patted her and watched the drug take effect as she struggled to retain consciousness.

"Be a good boy do your job."

"I only fight for myself, that's the way it always has been."

"Traitor."

"You knew that or else you would have never married me."

"Why?"  
"It's the way I am, no one can change that." He watched her begin to give in and doze off.. "Unlike you I could never change for the one I loved. Chan never asked me to and I never would have. You have to love a person for what they are…..and I still love her despite her betraying me. She did what she had to and I can't fault her for it. I wish you could understand that. I can't stay here, I don't want to. Sorry I guess that means you'll have to die with your lord doesn't it? We all make our choices…let's get you back home so you can bear my child and I can be done with you. Die for your cause if you want to so much." He said bitterly. He always hated having to take the life of one of the few useful people, but what had to be done had to be done. Pity that she came this far to end up facing the same fate she would have had in Rome. Doing your duty just got you killed, sometimes when you were the best, you had to carve your own path. And that meant going against everyone.

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"Oh we were looking for General Zhao." Luo came over to Dai and smiled.

"Well _you_ were, I was hoping to see General Ma." Mi shot her sister a smile.

"I'm General Ma." Dai smiled, this was a good day after all.

"Well, um, the other one." Mi looked at him worried. Where had her beautiful general gone?

"Oh, Lieutenant General Ma." Dai smirked; the girls were getting confused now that he was throwing military terms at them.

"Handsome?" Mi asked confused.

"Already spoken for, yeah that's him. Trust me you don't want to mess with my cousin. His true love will hack you to pieces if she finds out you've touched her precious Mengqi."

"But General Zhao is still free isn't he?"

"As far as I know. " Dai shrugged. He never did see Yun with any women, kind of odd. No wonder he was so grumpy at times. With Chao chewing his ear off about his best friend every waking moment, it would make a guy feel very alone. "He does need someone though."

"Really?" Luo asked excitedly.

"So what General Ma are you?" Mi asked.

"Major General Ma Dai." He stood up and bowed a little, but suddenly felt nauseous.

"Oh." She frowned. Well if things weren't going to work out with the better looking one….

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Zhuge Liang watched Lu Bu carry his wife back into the palace and turned to Jiang Wei. "Well he's bound to be pissed."

"What exactly is he thinking she'll do? She's ready to die for her lord and kill her husband."

"The man's an idiot."

Liu Bei burst in and screamed, "Shang's coming home! She'll be here in an hour!"

"Excellent news my lord." DAMMIT! Zhuge Liang's fist gripped his fan so tight the decorative handle imprinted its image on his palm.

"Yes! I'm riding out to meet her!" Liu Bei slammed the door on his way out and almost plowed into Lu Bu. "Oh my god, what happened?"

"She's not well." Lu Bu offered as an explanation and walked into Zhuge Liang's study.

"Liang can help, I'm sure." Liu Bei suddenly wasn't as excited. He wandered off to the stable to find Hex Mark.

"You fucker." Lu Bu growled at Liang.

"You were going to ruin everything. Now we have lost our opportunity, the empress is coming home."

"So what?"

"Put your wife to bed, she will be asleep for a while. When the Emperor comes back with his wife, they will dote on her and leave you alone. Perhaps while I am gone, you will have time to get your thoughts in order. Do you still want to have the world under your rule?"

"Of course."

"Then don't question me." Liang slammed his fan down. "I must deal with this upstart Sima Yi and send him crying back to Cao Cao. You and Jiang Wei will stay here, I will take your newly trained regiment and Huang Zhong will return to guard the capital. Then the army will return and we will have to readjust our plans. Be ready." Liang pushed past him and walked out.

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Zhuge Liang was at the head of his new unit when he saw the happy royal couple riding towards him. He could see Liu Bei's smile from here. Well enjoy it while you can, emperor. "My lord!"

"Kongming! Our queen is home at last!" Liu Bei rode up with Shang's hand in his.

"I have something for you, from Zhou Yu." Shang handed him the scroll.

"Thank you." Liang ignored them while Liu Bei planted a kiss on his wife and she giggled. He read the note silently to himself-_Zhuge Liang, our spies have discovered that Sima Yi has courted Diao Chan into serving Wei. I suspect he is going to try and suade Lu Bu, especially since Quinirius is his anchor. Be wary. –Zhou Yu"_ Liang refrained from laughing gleefully. Oh Sima Yi you wonderful genius! "Can you give this to Jiang Wei, and instruct him to destroy it upon reading it?"

"Anything wrong?" Liu Bei asked.

"Nothing to concern yourself with. My Lord." _Oh how sweet this will be._

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Cal woke up to see Lu Bu staring at her and she felt awful. The sweat was pouring off her face and she felt a jabbing pain in her stomach. "What the hell…"

"You're in labor." Lu Bu wiped her forehead with a towel.

"Shit." She tried to get up but felt extremely weak. What the hell had happened?

"Relax, Shang's come home and is going to help."

"How is that beneficial news?" Cal asked. Sun Shang Xiang hated everything to do with children and was even afraid of Liu Chan.

"HEY!" Shang bounced into the room and smiled. "You look like shit!"

"You look like you just got laid."

"Multiple times!" Shang grinned. "I am a lucky lucky woman, let me tell you." She watched her friend try and sit up. "Am I glad it's you and not me."

"Lu Bu, let me reiterate the fact that I hate you for doing this to me." Cal snorted.

"Okay." He smiled.

"Well, what happens now?" Shang asked.

"We wait." Lu Bu shrugged.

"God, you are all clueless." Liu Bei stood by the door and looked at Cal sympathetically.

"Aren't you all glowy?" Cal smirked and then grimaced. What the hell was that sharp pain?

"Glowy? Now you're making up words." Liu Bei stretched out his hand to his wife, "Come on Shang, let them have their space. I'll send the midwife in."

"Not that cunt." Cal snapped. "I'll gut that lard ass bitch with my nails." She hated the cocky midwife. She thought she knew everything and made sure to remind everyone of her precious duties.

"Relax." Lu Bu ran his hand over hers.

Cal looked at him and felt like she should remember something vital. "What happened?"

Lu Bu smirked, thankfully she didn't remember their conversation. Liang had some good mixtures. "You passed out and I brought you home. You had me worried."

"Past out? I've never past out."

"You did."

"And I don't buy that you're worried about me."

"I didn't say I was. I was worried about him." He let his hand touch her stomach. She was already dead to him.

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"Ma Su is up on the peak of Mt. Jie Ting?" Yue Ying asked incredulously.

"The man's an idiot. Misread Zhuge Liang's orders and now…." Pang Tong shrugged. "This isn't going to turn out well for us."

"Great so now we have to rescue him?" Ying asked furiously. "This battle is going to be bad enough."

"Are we too late?" Zhao Yun rode up and saluted.

"For once, no." Ying replied.

"Ouch." Yun dismounted.

"What's your problem?" Chao asked.

"Ma Su is up on the summit, and he's surrounded." Tong informed them. "He has the vast majority of our army."

"Oh." Chao looked up to the mountain. What a pain in the ass this battle was going to be.

"Liang's three miles away with his fresh troops, when he gets here we attack up the slope and save Ma Su." Ying shook her head. "Save him so we can cut his head off later."

"We should have listened to Liu Bei." Yun looked to Ying.

"Too late now."

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Sima Yi fanned himself and yawned. "God this is too easy."

Cao Cao looked at his new strategist and smiled. "You are very good."

"Thanks." Yi turned around and looked to Cao Pi. "Can you ask your wife to send in Diao Chan?"

"Of course sir." Pi turned around and galloped through the gate.

"I think we could use a little more drama in this battle, don't you?" Yi asked sinisterly.

"I like this added touch, it's very fitting." Cao Cao smiled. The younger man had recruited Diao Chan for the expressed purpose of allowing her to 'defect' to Shu. In reality Diao Chan was a very cunning woman who was thrilled at the opportunity to serve the winning side. She gratefully accepted the task and even shared a few nights with Cao Cao, a very welcome surprise. The Wei ruler suddenly understood why Lu Bu was so fascinated by her; she was incredible in every way.

"Once Chan defects they will take her home to her darling Lu Bu and the games shall begin. I do appreciate destroying an empire from within." Sima Yi looked to his lord, "Don't you agree?"

"It will amuse me to have Liu Bei fall because of the people under him destroying themselves, since he has prided himself on his loyal officers for so long. Once again we will show him the superiority of a well trained and obedient army." Cao Cao rubbed his chin.

"I thought it would." Yi smiled smugly. Chan would go home to Lu Bu, and lure him away. Then he would be alone once more and it would be easy to destroy him. But Sima Yi added an extra touch, he told Chan to ensure that Lu Bu take his child with him-thus ensnaring Cal into hunting him down. Why Cao Cao was so taken by the Roman woman he wasn't sure. Cao Ren suggested it was because she was uncontrollable and that pissed off the strict emperor. Yi agreed, Cao wanted to break her-then and only then would he be content with allowing the woman to die. Yi was intrigued by her, she had evaded death like an expert and he was still wondering how he could toy with her himself. He was looking forward to meeting her.

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"We must save Ma Su!" Zhuge Liang looked up to the summit. This was not part of the plan.

"No…. shit." Wei Yan rolled his eyes.

"I didn't ask you for your opinion, did I?" Liang snapped and sneered when Wei Yan gave him the finger.

"Wei forces are streaming down the mountain as we speak." Ying ran her finger over the map.

"Then Wei Yan will take the center, Ma Chao the right, Zhao Yun the left. Pang Tong, you go with Ma Chao. Ying with Wei Yan. Yun, fight your way to the summit and join with Ma Su. Therefore you will all have a strategist once you meet up with Sima Yi. I will follow once the path is clear." Liang squinted his eyes. "Ma Su has Chen Shi with him?"

"Real glad we swapped for him aren't you?" Tong poked Chao with his staff. "Shall we big guy?"

"Sure." He looked over to Dai. "Why don't you go with Wei Yan? We've got the path of least resistance."

"Sure!" Dai glowed, he had a good time with Mi, a real good time.

"Tell him about those girls you met." Chao snickered and followed Pang Tong out.

Yun laughed. "Oh yeah! Wei Yan we found you the perfect wife. Tell him about Luo, Dai."

"Hey Fluffy, look who it is. Ares." Tong moved over to the Arab and let Fluffy play with his mane.

"He's a really nice horse." Chao pet the grey's neck. "I'm very excited about Lotus's foal."

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Yun galloped up the slope only to hit a wall of Wei soldiers. Ma Su was in trouble, he could see Shu men trying to escape only to be cut down by the Wei soldiers he was now facing. He knew there wasn't much time. "CHARGE!" The regiment raced up the slope and crossbowmen materialized out of the rocks. Then he saw the volley come from behind the Wei lines, regular archers were aiming at his unit mid rank. The arrows arched over his head and he heard the screams as men went down. The second wave immediately followed, downing more men and their mounts. They were trying to trap the front lines by making an impenetrable line of casualties to their rear. He pressed Tsunami for more speed, they had to make it to the Wei lines before the crossbowman had a chance to……

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Wei Yan threw a man in the air and cleaved him in half with the Comet Strike. Once the separated pieces of the man's body hit the ground, he looked at the men in front of him and barked. They backed up nervously. He smiled as Yue Ying whipped her scythe threw the clump of men and ended their miserable existence. "Nice." He grunted.

"Really liked the bark, classy." She winked and moved off to the east, there was a path up the mountain that was being ignored.

"So…ladies?" He looked back to Ma Dai who was working his way through some archers.

"Yeah, cute little teenagers. Yun swears they make fried snakefish wontons that you'd love. I enjoyed the tea myself….and a lot more."

"Hmmmm…..road trip." He charged up the hill and noticed there were men hiding behind the small cottages. "BOOO!" He chopped at a man and took out the corner post holding up the cottage.

"General ahead!" Dai warned.

"Two." Yan corrected.

"Three?" Dai blinked as another materialized out of the fog.

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Cao Zhen looked to his distant cousins Xiahou Yuan and Dun. "Shall we rush them?"

"Of course." Dun drew the Kirin Fang and launched Flying Lightning down the hill.

"He just wants to see how fast his new horse runs. Must be nice to be the emperor's favorite." Yuan was still bitter over the gift. Then again Cao wasn't exactly pleased with his disappointing showing at Mt. Ding Jun. "HEY! Archers! Want to fire before you catch my brother in the crossfire? He has a big problem with arrows these days."

"SIR!" The head archer ordered his men to fire.

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Zhang He smiled as Ma Su battled with some bodyguards. "A beautiful sight."

Xu Huang rested his Marauder on his shoulder. He was really getting irritated with the feminine general; his language gave him a headache. "Let's attack."

"Yes, like falling blossoms." He smiled. He raised his claw. "Onward men, with grace and dignity!"

Huang hoisted his weapon for his men to see. "BOYS! Slaughter every last man!"

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Ma Chao galloped up the steep slope and left Pang Tong's scrappy little mare in the dust. He immediately saw Zhang Liao. "I am the sword of justice!"

Zhang Liao smirked and adjusted his hat. He touched the brim with his spear in a mock salute. "A duel? Very well." He looked at the familiar grey horse. "Now I do believe I've seen that horse before. Not man enough to bring your own steed to battle?"

Chao charged and growled. "FEEL MY WRATH!"

Pang Tong made it up the slope and Fluffy heaved underneath him. "Okay girl. I'll let you rest here." He pet his worn out horse and jumped down. As Chao charged Zhang Liao, Tong made eye contact with a very pretty lady. "Hey baby. How bout a little tussle?"

Zhen Ji stood in her beauty queen pose and tapped her flute on her hand. The short sage would be a fun one to duel, why not? "I shall play a requiem for you." She smirked.

"Oh gorgeous, that is music to my ears!"

Ji growled, how dare he mock her. Well he would see the power of her Darkmoon Flute! She pressed the instrument to her lips and blew.

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Zhao Yun opened his eyes and looked up at the darkening sky. He moved but pain washed over him and he looked down to see two arrows imbedded in his armor and another in his exposed shoulder. His men were confused and were circling trying their best to stay calm, but soon they would panic. He forced himself up and pulled the arrow out, only to fall back to his knees. He focused on Tsunami who was standing calmly amidst the chaos. "Here boy." The white steed came to him and he pulled himself into the saddle. He had to stay mounted, walking was going to be difficult. "Men! Form on me! CHARGE!" He watched the men turn and rush up the hill, finally breaking through the Wei lines.

Up ahead, Ma Su was fleeing from a skipping Zhang He and a an enraged Xu Huang. Yun galloped up to him then shouted back to his men, "Retreat! He looked to Chen Shi who was being sliced into threads by Zhang He's claws. "For the sake of my lord….I cannot fall here." He turned Tsunami back towards the slope and let him have his head. Yun knew he probably wouldn't be conscious when they made it back to camp, he already was feeling the effects of the bloodloss.

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"I am Xiahou Dun! Come if you want to die!" Dun screamed as he galloped Lightning over the bodies of the fallen Shu troops. He spotted Wei Yan targeting his brother, but instead aimed for Ma Dai. He was distracted as Wei Yan unseated Yuan and musoued him, and the Enforcer Rod flew out of his brother's hand. Before he could turn his attention back to Dai, he was knocked out of the saddle by the Martial Scythe.

"I shall prove my might to you." Yue Ying smiled.

"Where's your cowardly husband?" Dun got up and dusted himself off.

"Where a commander should be."

"Hiding behind the skirt of his wife?" Dun asked. He heard his brother behind him.

"Me? Die?" Yuan coughed and hit his knees, still reaching out for the Enforcer Rod twenty feet away.

"Yuan?" Dun turned and saw Wei Yan standing over his body

"Enemy…Dead" Yan grunted and turned to finish off the men he was originally fighting.

Cao Zhen, full of zeal, charged Ma Dai. "I am Cao Zhen! You will fall to my blade!"

"Hell no!" Dai jumped up off a crate and used an aerial maneuver to attack the man and knock him off his horse. He landed his blow in Zhen's throat and when the two men hit the ground, Cao Zhen lost half of his neck. "Whoops. How lucky was that? Seven Stars Sash, you are a keeper!"

"Back to me." Ying cracked her Scythe on Dun's heavily armored chest.

"I will avenge my brother's death! You will all die!"

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Tong smiled as he tripped Ji with his staff. "Sorry, let me help you up!" He slipped his staff back under he small of her back and tossed her in the air.

Ji couldn't believe her musou did nothing the little freak; he even seemed to enjoy it. Now he was toying with her and she was pissed. When he leapt into the air to strike her she met him with her flute. "You bastard!"

"I think you're cute too!"

"ARGGGG!" She pushed herself off of him and landed twenty yards away on her knees. She saw Ma Chao plowing through her men, he made easy work of Zhang Liao. Quite a disappointment considering the general used to spar with the mighty Lu Bu. But then again this son of Ma Teng was quite impressive. No wonder Cal had her eyes on him. She let a wicked though cross her mind and stood up. She turned to Pang Tong and huffed, "To be humiliated like this..." Then she ran off to the north, to unleash Diao Chan.

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Zhuge Liang watched Zhao Yun's horse gallop back into the camp with the general flopping around on his neck. It could only mean one thing, the left flank was compromised. He urged his horse over to the bodyguards who were helping the injured man out of the saddle. "General!"

"Ma Su….is safe." Yun muttered. "Had to pull back….they have us beat." Yun moaned as the bodyguards pulled him from the saddle. The rich red blood from his shoulder wound had soaked him entirely and Tsunami's pristine white neck.

"Thank you sir. Please take care of the General's wounds. And have him ready to be evacuated." Liang looked down at the man, he would hang on. Zhao Yun was a stubborn one.

Ma Su rode up and looked at his old friend. "Sir, I'm sorry."

"Not as sorry as you're going to be when Liu Bei gets a hold of you."

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"PULL BACK!" Ma Su rode up to Wei Yan and looked at Yue Ying who was scratched up pretty bad from her battle with Xiahou Dun. The two were still going at it.

Ma Dai ran up and looked at the man, "What?"

"We're retreating, pull back!" Su turned away from the vicious stare the Wei Yan gave him.

"Retreat…." Yan nodded to Dai.

"Dammit! Ying screamed at Dun as she threw her strong attack to stun him.

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"Retreat! Su galloped up the small pass and almost trampled Pang Tong.

"What the hell are you doing over here you piece of shit?" Tong growled.

"We are defeated, pull back." Su looked over at Ma Chao who was furious.

"This is all because you can't read!" Chao snapped.

"I will pay for that later." Su knew his execution was unavoidable.

"Good riddance." Tong looked up the hill as an amazing sight ran toward them.

Diao Chan screamed and raced toward Ma Chao, just as Ji had instructed her. This was going to be fun; it was time to settle the score with that pesky Roman girl she met in Luo Yang. She was going to take away her husband and her love. She screamed again and ran straight at that familiar little Arabian horse.

Zhen Ji ran over some of her own men in pursuit. "You stupid bitch, get back here!" She brought Melody, her white mare, to a skidding halt and waved her flute menacingly. She hollered. "I will see you dead before this war is over! How dare you escape from Cao Cao!" She turned and rode back to Zhang Liao, with a wicked grin on her lips.

"Help me!" Chan ran into Ma Chao as he dismounted to investigate. "Please…." She began to sob and turned back to Wei lines as if looking for someone. It worked perfectly.

"Who are you?" Tong scratched his head with his staff.

"My name…is Diao Chan." She looked up at Ma Chao with a quivering lip. "Please…take me with you. Don't let him hurt me anymore!"

"Of course not. Come, "Chao lifted her onto Ares and mounted up behind her. "We will not leave you. Pull Back!"

"Come on Fluffy! Time to go." Tong gave his horse a sugar cube and mounted up. "That is a mighty pretty lady." Tong smiled.

Chan purposely leaned back into Chao's chest and wrapped her hands over his on the pommel. Calpurnia Quinirius would rue the day she tried to ruin Diao Chan's hard work. She would make sure she destroyed everything the woman had. It served her right. There was only room in China for one backstabbing bitch. Chan smiled. This line of work was so much fun, and she never really realized how much she missed it.

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Zhuge Liang frowned as he looked back at Sima Yi riding down the slopes of Mt. Jie Ting. The Shu army was in full retreat and thanks to the fresh troops he had taken from Lu Bu, they would all make it back to Cheng Du in one tattered piece. Ma Su's mistake was unforgivable. How dare he embarrass the great Zhuge Liang, who had championed him, in front of that bastard newcomer Sima Yi. "You may have won the first battle Sima Yi, but it will take a lot more than luck to bring me down." He rode up to the rear guard. "Pull back. I believe I have bought enough time."


	29. Tattered Flags

Author's Note: You probably know the reason why I haven't updated in so long.....Empires is so addicting.

Chapter 29

Tattered Flags

"Ares, Va Cal." Chao looked at the stud as his ears perked up. He took the halter off and watched the grey colt gallop off towards Cheng Du, to see his mom.

"You really love her don't you?" Diao Chan asked as she appeared out of the darkness.

"Who?" Chao turned away from the enchantress.

"You know who. The wife of the man I love."

"You're awfully inquisitive." Chao turned back and looked at her. She was one of the most beautiful women he had ever seen, but he was perfectly aware of the fact that she knew that.

"I want to get back to him." Chan sighed and sat down on a rock and looked up at him with a longing look.

"Why did you leave him in the first place then?"

"Why did you tell your woman you didn't want her?"

"I asked first." Chao didn't like how much this woman knew about them.

"I love Lu Bu, but if I stayed with him he would have done something stupid to protect me. And if I returned to him he would have not had the strength to join with Liu Bei. I know my lord very well, he is very ambitious when he wants to make someone happy."

"Then what do you hope to achieve by returning to him?"

"I answered your question, General, now you answer mine." She fluttered her eyelashes at him and saw him fidget.

"She surprised me, I've never met a woman so forward before. I had too much on my mind and I didn't need something else." Chao cocked an eyebrow at her. "Your turn again."

Chan stood up and looked up at the moon. "I would be happy to be his concubine if he so desires. As long as I am with my lord, it does not matter to me." She walked over to him. "You are an exceptionally attractive and talented man, why do you want another man's wife? I'm sure there are many women who would die for the chance to be with you."

Chao swallowed hard. She was very close and he didn't like the feeling he was getting. "Like I said Cal is different."

"Very. I can't help but think she is too different. You are rumored to be a very virtuous man, how is it that you are accepting of an adulteress?"

"I believe it is my turn to ask a question." Chao snapped. That one struck home. He was having a hard time with the fact that he loved a married woman. He believed in a lot of things and suddenly his beliefs were beginning to falter. At Tong Gate he had blasted her continually for what he found offensive, now he found all of those offenses endearing. How could he change his ideals and morals so quickly? "What will he do for you? Will he betray Liu Bei?"

"You'd love that wouldn't you? How easy that would make everything. You become the hero of Shu and secure yourself a wife as a prize. No, my Lord Ma, I will not allow him to get out of hand again. He must grow up sometime; I just want to give him a reason to. Especially since his actual wife doesn't appreciate the great thing she has." Chan looked him over. He had removed his armor and had left his tunic partial open. Probably accidental, he only came out into the night to send his equine messenger back to Cheng Du. She let her eyes linger on his well muscled chest. It was not Lu Bu's, but it was still incredibly impressive. She watched him pull his tunic closed and looked up at him. "Do you find me attractive?"

"Yes. I doubt there is a man anywhere who wouldn't." He knew she'd ask that, as if she didn't hear that enough.

"You're turn." She smiled.

"How did you end up in Cao Cao's hands?"

Chan frowned and turned away. She closed her eyes and began to squeeze out some tears. "You know how evil he is, why would you force me to remember that?" She tossed a sad glance over her shoulder at him, just to give him a glimpse of her tears.

"You didn't answer my question." He wanted her to go away. It was so long since he had seen Cal and six months of nothing but thinking about her was going to drive him insane. Damn this woman, she was good.

"He sought me out and added me to his collection. That demented pervert." She shook her head. "I'm done for tonight. Excuse me." She sat down and began to cry. _Come on you chivalrous idiot, comfort me!_

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Cal woke up when she heard the familiar nicker echoing in the night. She jumped out of bed and ran over to the balcony. Unsure of the correct procedure, the guards were looking down and staring at the crazy animal. She ran back into the room and threw on a robe and looked at her husband asleep on the bed. Why the hell was he so insistent on being here now? She glanced over at the crib and looked down at her son. Young Lu Xi was finally asleep, the child had the irritating tendency of his father to be very demanding and make her breasts sore. She knew Chao had sent Ares back to her and she wanted to jump on the horse and ride right back to him….but she had someone else to think about now. She looked back down at Xi, he would be up soon, she better just get her horse and bring him in.

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"Oh No! Do I hear a damsel in distress?" Tong shuffled into the clearing, pushing past Ma Chao.

Chao smiled to himself. The little sage was a very good man. "I said the wrong thing I'm afraid."

Chan silently cursed the cloaked freak. "I'm….fine." _You ruined it!_

"I'll keep ya company! Chao needs his beauty sleep."

Chao sighed and left, tomorrow he would finally see his love again. He just hoped she hadn't lost faith.

"So gorgeous, do you want to hear some poetry?" Tong giggled at Chan's polite smile.

"Sure." She would have to wait to get her hands on the truly splendid Ma Chao.

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Cal waited anxiously on Ares a few miles from Cheng Du. She knew he would be in the lead; he was the finest cavalryman in all of China. So much had happened since they parted and a small part of her told her that there was a great deal more that she missed. Lu Bu was happy to ignore her now, thanks to Lu Xi. She felt almost like she had betrayed Chao when she tried to convince Lu Bu to stay put. Her fantasy life with Chao was banking on Lu Bu leaving but they were the same horrible thing, killing machines powered by an insatiable bloodlust. Even now, as she sat on her faithful steed, she couldn't wait to get back on the battlefield. Knowing that the Shu army has just gotten their asses handed to them didn't help. Then the dust cloud got closer and a lone man in golden armor on a white horse appeared. She galloped down the road to meet him.

"Hey beautiful." Chao pulled her off her horse and into his arms, kissing her immediately.

"I thought you forgot about me." She pulled his handsome face down to meet her excited kiss.

"I'm sorry, have we met before?" His grin broadened.

"Shut up and kiss me." She held on to his neck as he dismounted with her cradled in his arms. She locked onto his lips again as he put her feet back on the ground.

"You look incredible…" He said while he stared at her chest.

"I just had a baby Chao, they're going to deflate."

"Damn." He kissed the exposed portion of her breasts. "How did you fit them in your vest?"

"I had the button moved." She looked over as Tsunami nudged her looking for a treat. "Chao? What's wrong with Yun?"

Chao stopped and looked at her panicked face. "He's going to be alright, he just lost a lot of blood."

"How?"

"Archers."

"DAMMIT!" Cal pushed off of him and into her saddle. "Where is he?"

"Come on, I'll take you to him." Chao jumped up on Tsunami and galloped after her. Ares was already at full gallop before he turned Tsunami back to the east.

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Cal saw Zhao Yun's crest on the fluttering flag near a tree. A small lean-to was propped so that the ailing general could have some shade and rest before continuing to Cheng Du.

Yun looked at Cal and smiled. "You lost weight."

"Funny." She kissed his cheek and sat down next to him. "You alright?"

"I think I'll be fine." Yun coughed. "Maybe get some much needed attention from the ladies."

"I'll stay with you." She volunteered.

"Yeah, because you are so very available." Yun looked over at Chao. "That one hasn't been able to shut up about you since we left."

"Well…" Chao blushed a bit.

"Oh now you're embarrassed. You weren't at all flustered last night when you were talking about her..."Yun cocked and eyebrow as Chao wrapped his hand over his mouth and grinned nervously at Cal.

"My what?" she queried and saw his bright smile and quickly forgot about the question.

Yun pushed the hand away. "Please take him away from me. If I have to suffer through another discussion about your finer points I'm going to kill myself."

"You're not allowed to die." Cal put her head to his. "Got it?"

"How's everything going on the home front?" Chao asked.

"Well Bei and Shang have been frolicking around Cheng Du like when they were first married. Huang Zhong has been supervising the bow production facilities and had been tinkering with a more kick ass bow for his men. I've been miserable and Lu Bu's been so focused on Xi that I haven't had to deal with him."

"Who's Xi?" Yun asked and looked to Chao who was also perplexed.

"My….my son." Cal was still struggling with the notion herself.

"Oh." Yun squeezed her hand.

"I've been trying to convince Lu Bu to change. He won't."

"I'm sorry I couldn't get back sooner." Chao hung his head apologetically.

"I'm concerned about Xi. If Lu Bu turns on us were going to execute him. If that happens….what happens to our son?" Cal asked Yun.

"He won't have many options if he's the son of a traitor." Yun told her what she had been dreading.

"Cal…..I'd never turn you away. That goes for your child too." Chao took her hand. "I want you to know that I'm here no matter what happens."

"You've got responsibilities Chao. You can't go picking up strays and bringing them home." Cal turned her head away.

"Well hell, then I guess you'll be left with me." Yun smiled. "I hear you're great with that tongue of yours."

"All I ever did was kiss you." Cal looked to Chao who turned red.

Yun laughed. "That's all he ever bragged about but thanks for giving him something else to think on." Yun groaned and sat up.

"Yeah, I'm such a whore." She frowned.

"Well then maybe you're going for the wrong Ma man." Dai grinned as he entered the structure. "Sounds like we might be destined for each other. I am on my very own quest to become a male-slut."

"Dai, I can still pick you up by your foot and hang you in a tree." Chao threatened.

"See he really does love you. My cousin has never been pissed off by any comment I've made about one of his women. Ever." Dai smirked and handed Yun some wonton soup. "Actually I can't help but think that Uncle Teng would have thought you two a good match as well."

Chao looked away a moment as his cousin mentioned his dead father. How was he going to fill his shoes? "Yeah, he always did say I was too serious."

"Amongst other things." Dai mumbled. "Anyhow it will be interesting. Chao with his brooding and over thinking and Cal with her sharp wit and instincts. You'll even each other out. Good thing, Chao needed someone to get that book of etiquette out of his ass."

"Things change Dai." Chao looked down at the woman beside him and she wrapped her arms around his waist. He wrapped his arm around her and squeezed.

"I always wanted a stealthy ass-kicker in the family." Dai grinned

"Well then if it makes you happy Dai, I suppose there really is no other choice." Chao sighed dramatically. "Looks like you'll just have to come home with us."

"We need to talk." Cal pulled away from her man and went out the side of the tent.

"She's freaking out Chao." Yun put his hand out to Dai who gave him a gold coin. "I told you so."

"You two bet on it?"

"Yeah." Dai nodded. "We don't really have anything else to do."

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"You've been cheating on me, haven't you?" Chao smiled as he ran his hand down her arm.

"With my husband." Cal tried to move away but he held her in place.

"I'm not letting you go." Chao chuckled. "Too late for that."

"I can't be the woman you need Menqi. You can't take me home with you, I'll only destroy you reputation, respect and life. Darling, it's like a dream with you, but like a dream we must wake up eventually."

"That's a rather severe prediction." Chao played with her earlobe. "I love you, I don't care what anyone thinks about it. You will be my wife and I will adopt Xi. That's all there is to it. The end is near; don't loose faith in me now."

"I've been trying to stop him from leaving. I changed; I thought he might want to. But I guess you have to want to."

"I love you, he doesn't. It's as simple as that. Just a little longer, I promise this will work out."

"Well you better hope it does because I'm planning on haunting you if it doesn't." Cal smirked and hugged him.

"Good."

"So…" Cal ran her hands into his tunic. "You want to play?"

"Yes, but I'm not going to." He pulled her hand away. "You're married and I'm going to wait until your not."

"There went my motivation." Cal growled as he kissed her.

"Can you just be satisfied with kissing me for now?" He played with her hair.

"Isn't that just as bad?"

"Um, no." He gave her another kiss. "I can't let you destroy all my morals now can I?"

"Actually you can." She grinned and tried to put her hand down his pants.

"Bad girl." He pushed her hand away. "No means no."

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After the execution of Ma Su, the officers we quiet and antisocial. Cal followed Tong back to his tent, where he promised to teach her about strategy.

"Oh we forgot to tell you." Tong looked up from his _Art of War_. "Xiahou Yuan got killed."

"Oh." Cal fell silent. Poor Dun. She never really took to Yuan, he was always a dick to her, but she left him alone because he was Dun's brother. She would have killed him if she had to, but still…... "You have some paper? A pen maybe?"

"Even ink." Tong gave her the requested items.

Cal began to write out a short note. But Tong was staring at her. "What?"

"When did you learn how to write?"

"I didn't. I only know how to write four things. 'Cao Cao' 'Xiahou Dun', 'Wei' and 'Sesame Chicken'. I actually spent more time teaching Dun Latin than I did learning Chinese." She continued her letter. 'Xiahou Dun' she wrote, concentrating heavily on the Chinese letters, then she switched to Latin and quickly completed her communication. '_requiescat__ in pace_.'(l. May he rest in peace.) And signed it. It had to be short, she never got around to teaching him all that much of her language. "You have anyone who can deliver this?"

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"Shang and I are going for a ride, we were wondering if anyone else would be interested in coming along." Liu Bei looked over the small group of four officers: Cal, Chao, Tong and Ying.

"Hey Tong, it sounds like the emperor is warming up to the orgy idea." Cal winked at Liu Bei and blew him a kiss.

"Ooohhh! I call Shang. I like her bandana." Tong smiled and giggled.

"I'll take Chao." Ying smiled, "Payback for ChiBi."

"No, No, No." Liu Bei turned red, "I' wasn't suggesting….."

"You and me baby." Cal stood and began to prod Bei's chest. "It's about time…."

Shang laughed as Tong puckered up for a kiss. These people were crazy and it was good to be back with them. "I want to be in control." She kissed him in a nice friendly manner, making him giggle.

"All the better!" Tong hugged her and tossed her tiny body over his shoulder. "Grab your girl Chao, Ying's mine next."

Chao smiled as Cal made Liu Bei's face turn a shade of red he never though possible. "I can't believe you all do this to him." He looked to Ying.

"We've been neglecting him." Ying smirked as Bei put Cal in a headlock. "He should know by now to watch what he says to us."

"I never said anything like that!" Bei had to laugh as Ying grinned at him "I just wanted to show you all the peach orchard."

"THE peach orchard?" Cal smacked his ass and won her freedom.

"Yes, now Chao if you won't mind taking your girlfriend back I would rather take my chances with Ying."

Chao froze and saw Ying do the same. "Sir?"

"I told him." Cal gave an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I forgot to communicate that didn't I?"

"And you're not mad?" Chao asked cautiously.

"Chao, this young lady has done more for me since I have met her than anyone. I hope it all works out for the best." Bei kissed Cal's head. "She deserves it."

Ying ran over and wrapped her arms around the emperor's neck. "You are the best!"

"Looks like two on one, sorry Chao you sit out this round." Cal swiped Liu Bei's crown.

"Give me that!" Bei snatched it back and put it back on his head. "Watch it, or I'll change my mind. Just don't think I'm going to go easy on you young man! You're going to have to ask me for her hand."

"Ooohh!" Cal clapped. "I'm being adopted! Shang! You're my new mommy! Ha and a new grandma too!" Cal ran off after Tong.  
"You girls will be the death of me I swear."

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"So this is it." Sun Shang Xiang leaned into Liu Bei and pushed him off balance.

"Yes, this is it." He righted himself and watched the others look around.

Cal was trying to get a peach but it was too high for her. "For once I have a use for my husband and he's not here."

"What?" Chao asked concerned.

"A 6' 11" human ladder would be awesome right now."

"Will 6'1" do?" Chao bent down to give her access to his shoulders.

"I finally get you between my legs.." She giggled and squeezed his neck with her thighs.

"Well this is pretty." Tong took off his mask and hat. "Hopefully it doesn't have a name like Decomposing Phoenix Orchard."

"No, I doubt it does." Bei watched Shang pull away from him and almost got nailed in the eye with a peach.

"Sorry!" Cal shouted as she handed a few to Chao. She shoved one in her man's mouth and laughed.

"Thanks." Bei bit into the fruit and smiled as Tong caught his in his hat.

Shang looked around the clearing and over at the small alter that was at the center of the garden. "Over here?"

"Yeah. I wish Fei and Yu could be here but they're so wrapped up in the power struggle out east….I just wanted to share it with you all."

"Yun's gonna be pissed." Cal smiled as Chao let her down. Zhao Yun was beginning to feel left out of everything. She was going to be spending a lot of time with him, despite his protests. She was also going to make sure he got to play some chess with the emperor.

Shang felt at ease here and looked back to Liu Bei's warm smile and knew what she was feeling was so very right. With her right hand she raised her Chakram to her waist and held it out flat. "In this same garden then, I swear to help you unite the country and bring peace back to the land."

The group paused and watched her. Ying instinctively knew what to say, "And I too pledge my undying support of our Lord. May my inventions and strategies bring him victory." She raised her scythe then laid the blade flat on Shang's Chakram.

Cal whipped out her rapier in a swift a fluid motion, adding it to her friends. "I will give my life and soul to protecting our lord."

"Then here, we three pledge our everlasting loyalty to Liu Bei." Shang used her other Chakram to lie on top of the weapon collection and bind them together. "We are now bound together by this oath, as Liu Bei and his brothers still are. There is nothing that may stand between us and our duty now, agreed?"

"For our lord." Ying nodded.

"Long live Liu Bei." Cal agreed.

Shang pulled her Chakrams away and looked at the two women. "We need a catchy name now."

"Tigress Generals." Ying smiled. "I'm sick of getting Tiger General shit getting thrown in my face."

"Except that denotes a high ranking general. Need I remind you that I am barely worthy of the Brigadier General title I currently hold?" Cal smirked. Why the hell couldn't she be a good general?

"General's a general." Shang shrugged. "That works?"

"Yes." Ying smiled. "What do you think my lord?"

Liu Bei brushed back a tear. "You are all too good to me."

Shang bounced up to him and kissed him tenderly. "Someone has to be, you're so rough on yourself!"

"Cal, I couldn't think of anyone I'd be more proud to have by my side." Chao gently kissed her, still wierded out by Liu Bei's encouragement.

"Ying!" Tong raised his hands and pulled the taller woman into his face. "You are the greatest!" He kissed her.

Ying pulled away. "Tong!" What the hell has gotten into you!"

"You were left out! I may not kiss like Zhou Tai, but I ain't bad lady!"

"I don't think anyone kisses as well as Zhou Tai." Cal had to admit then glanced into Chao's annoyed eyes. "Sorry sweetheart, it's the truth."

"Oh, Yeah. Ying is in love with Zhou Tai." Shang whispered in Liu Bei's ear.

"Well, you're still faithful to me right?"

"You're not an egotistical asshole." Shang grinned. "I'm the only one happy with her husband."

"Good. I was beginning to wonder about them. Zhou Tai, huh?"

"Yeah. Cal was just covering for them. She's a very good friend." Shang turned around and smiled at her friend happy and content in Chao's embrace.

"I know." Bei kissed her cheek and watched Tong pout.

"If you like the guy on guy thing, Ying, why is girl and girl so weird?" Tong smiled.

"Tong, that's not even a rational argument. I'm not joining you or any of your concubines."

"How bout you Cal? I know Chao's being a prude." Tong shifted his attention to the Roman girl.

"I have to pay for my Tai kissing compliment." She smiled as Chao laughed.

"Indeed you do."

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A courier arrived from the east, and the gates opened for the man. Shang looked to Liu Bei, she smiled as he looped his arm around her. She looked back to the gate and he spirits fell. Zhou Tai was back.

Tai sighed. He hated doing this, but it was the only chance he probably was going to have to see Ying. He walked Mariner over to the Shu ruler and his queen. "I'm sorry."

"Who?" Shang squeaked.

"Ce."

Shang burst into tears and buried her head into Liu Bei's chest. "Why?"

"Sunny." Liu Bei held her and closed his eyes. She was going to leave again….and he needed her so much.

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Ying stared up into Tai's eyes and smiled. "I can't believe it…."

"Nor I." Tai kissed her and heard Cal mutter something behind them. "What? Jealous?"

"Yeah. Wish I picked someone without morals." She dropped into the pillows next to Tong and glared at Chao.

"It's bad enough I'm waiting around for a chance to kill your husband, honey." Chao felt like all they did was argue about this anymore. He sat down in a chair and ran his hand through his hair. "I don't need to compound that with adultery. I'm trying to turn you into an honest woman."

"You are wasting your time." Cal leaned against Tong.

"So why is Liang letting you go back with Shang again?" Tong asked, it was a really weird thing for Zhuge Liang to accept, even with Liu Bei's support.

"He said that I should work with his brother Jin while I am there to solidify our alliance with Wu. That and bring Shang back home in a more timely manner than last time."

"So you're refusing to sleep with her?" Tai asked of the younger man.

"Yeah." Cal snapped.

"That's why you love me." Chao retorted.

"Oddly honorable." Tai shrugged.

"I am so glad you didn't do that to me." Ying smiled and rubbed his chest.

"You didn't have a husband to sleep with if I didn't." Tai winked at Cal.

"Lu Bu is occupied with Diao Chan. That's all he cares about." Cal played with a pillow. "I need to apologize for what I said last time we talked….you were right."

Tai smiled. "Well hopefully we can help each other out. We are the bad-asses of the forbidden couples."

"Yes we are." Cal grinned up at Chao. "Something you're going to find out when I break that chastity belt of yours."

"So you're going to take out Lu Bu and Zhuge Liang now?" Ying laughed. "Talk about confidence, Cal."

"Ying, if I wanted them dead they wouldn't still be drawing air."

"But you're not going to kill anyone like that anymore. You don't have to." Chao reprimanded her.

"Well he's pretty bossy." Tong nudged Cal. "That's what you get for picking the prefect of Xiliang."

"What exactly does that mean?" Cal asked the question that had been bugging her for so long.

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"Alright, ready for your present?" Chao bent down and smiled at her.

"Do you really like the voyeur thing?" Cal looked around the training field and saw Dai laugh.

"Rape him!" Dai screamed.

Yun had to smile. "She can do it Chao. Don't let your guard down."

Chao sighed, as if he didn't have enough of their endless teasing. "No. Get your mind off of that. It only makes it harder…."

Cal latched on to his crotch. "Indeed it does, baby."

"NO!" Chao pulled her hand off. "Harder to wait!"

"Then give in to my seductive wiles." She licked his thumb.

"Stop it!" He let go of her hand and watched Dai double over with laugher.

"I love this!" Dai squeaked.

"This is your present." Chao handed her a spear.

"If I exchange it can I have your spear instead?" She reached out for his crotch again.

"No…"he had to laugh; she was just so damned cute.

"Long smooth shaft….broad head" Cal growled seductively.

Yun laughed as Chao began to blush. "You're never going to make it Chao."

"Oh I will. Never underestimate the stubborn streak of the Ma Clan."

"Honey, I'm a Roman. We always take what we want." She watched him pick up the Stallion Fury. "But apparently I need to subdue you first. Very well."

"I'll make a deal with you. If you can best me on this field then I will allow you to trample my morals along with my pride and dignity."

"GREAT!" Cal smiled.

"With that spear."

"DAMN!" her shoulders fell. "Chao, I hate pole arms."

"A spear is a far better weapon to use on horseback. Ares is a fine warhorse and you are really destructive together, I just want to make you better."

"Great. In addition to my literacy lessons with Yun and my 'How to be a good general in two-thousand easy steps' class with Tong, I'm really beginning to feel like you all don't like me the way I am."

"Don't forget your parenting class with Liu Bei." Yun snickered.

"Maybe you can teach me how to be a bigger whore." Dai laughed as Chao shot him an agitated glance.

"We just want to help." Chao grinned. "So are you really going to protest me helping you figure out your stance?" He swung in behind her and wrapped his arms around her body. Taking her hands in his he put them on the spear where he though she should hold them, then used his knee to move her leg into the right position.

"It's kind of hot; don't you think you need to take off your tunic? I worry about heat exhaustion with you wearing all those heavy clothes." She rubbed her ass against his groin

"I'm sorry, did you say something? I was too busy ogling your breasts." Chao replied.

"Do you have to do this in public?" Lu Bu took his arm off of Chan's shoulder as he approached.

"I brought her back a gift and thought I'd teach her how to use it properly." Chao snapped.

"Oh….well in that case I've got a gift for you too, sweetie." Lu Bu raised his halberd.

"Shouldn't you be in our bedroom with your trophy whore?" Cal pulled away from Chao.

"Tell me, Chao. Exactly how is it that someone who claims to be so righteous can justify stealing another man's wife?" Lu Bu crossed his arms and stared menacingly at the shorter man.

Chao stared back. "If you tell me how you can change your belief every week. On this very same battlefield you offered her to entice me over to your side, now you are offended by my interests."

"That was before I realized you were trying to betray me. Pretend to befriend me, fuck my wife then put a knife in my back."

"I've never fucked your wife." Chao snapped.

"And I'll be the one putting the knife in your back." Cal smiled dangerously.

"Oh, so you haven't scrapped all your standards yet. Truly commendable." Lu Bu ignored his wife and grinned as the young warrior began to let his anger get the best of him. "So do you think you're actually good enough to fight me? Do you want to die that quickly, boy?"

Cal threw the spear at him and Lu Bu raised his arm to defect it. "I won't have you insulting him."

"You're even less of a threat, darling." He smirked knowing it would egg her on.

"I'm a lot better than you think, bitch." Cal slammed her fist into his lower jaw.

Lu Bu took a step back and gave her his famous scowl of death. "Well then, you've already shown me everything else." He gave Chao a look to see if his rage was boiling over yet. It definitely was. "Well, go ahead, I'll give you the second move too."

Cal walked back to Yun, who had her rapier. "Can I have my bracers too?"

Yun took her arms and put the bracers on for her. "Be careful."

"Keep an eye on Chao, please." She looked to them both.

"Yeah, that's going to be an easy fight to break up." Dai mumbled and handed Cal her shield.

Cal took her weapons and marched back to Lu Bu. "Shall we?"

"Don't you want to do your gibberish thing?" Lu Bu waved Sky Scorcher at her and narrowly missed swiping Chao with the blunt end. "You might want to back up there, sonny, this is between me and my wife."

"Go ahead Cal, kill him." Chao took a few steps back and kept his angry eyes on Lu Bu.

"That will be the day."

"Get my spear, would you Dai?" Yun asked and stood up with a groan.

"Exitus Acta Probat." Cal kept her eyes closed and let her fury take over her self-control. This would be a dirty fight, and he didn't deserve any better.

"I'm waiting!" Lu Bu stood and yawned. Then his eyes got wide and he hit the ground as Cal threw her knife at his head. When he looked up, Lu Bu had to roll out from under her jumping strike attack that surprised him. When did she learn that? He righted himself and met her attempt to stun him. "Well, you have gotten better….Ughhh."

Cal used her forehead to headbutt him in the mouth. With her shield she clocked him on the left side of the head and smashed the hilt of her rapier into the right side. He had no choice but to fall backwards. But as she tried to jump onto him with a down thrust, his foot came up and tossed her across the field.

Chao gripped his weapon nervously. Cal rolled back on her knees and flung her shield at her husband and it whistled through the air like one of Sun Shang Xiang's Sol Chakrams. He saw the giant swat at it and send to flying back at her. With nothing to protect herself with she raised her arm, and the shield slammed into her bracer. Chao saw her wince; it was the same wrist she injured before. He looked over at Yun who was watching everything stoically, Fierce Dragon in his hand.

Cal launched her slender skinning knife at Lu Bu as she sprinted at him, ready to musou him. "This is one thing I will not regret!"

"Wrong again!" Lu Bu slammed her into the ground with his weapon, ignoring the pain from the knife embedded in his arm. "Today you die for your arrogance…." He began to swipe at her neck but something impeded its path.

Chao met the great halberd with his spear and pushed it away from his slightly stunned lover. "I do believe it is time for you and I to settle our differences. I happen to be in love with your wife and in order for us to be together you must be eliminated. Too bad, huh?"

"So, the man who hurt her enough to drive her into my arms wants to save the day. Interesting." Lu Bu pulled back and looked over his new opponent. "How valiant."

Chao fumed. "I'll rectify my mistakes today, with your life."

"Why is it that men are always fighting over _her_." Diao Chan sauntered up and smiled taking Lu Bu's arm.

"I'm not fighting over her." Lu Bu suddenly realized how ridiculous it must seem to the woman he loved. How could he insult her by killing a man for his wife?

Chao spun his spear and pulled back to help Cal off the ground. "You Okay?"

Cal blinked and sat up felling Chao's strong hand on her back she looked at Lu Bu with his gem. "Fine."

"I thought I was all you needed." Chan asked meekly. She looked down at the annoying Roman woman and gave her finest sneer. Lu Bu had to leave with her, those were her orders. Then and only then could this stupid slut have her chance to kill him, only to find herself back in Cao Cao's hands. How satisfying that turn of events would be.

"You are right as always, Chan." Lu Bu wrapped his arm back around her and pulled the knife out of his arm. "Oh I bet you want that back." He threw it down at her chest, annoyed when she deflected it with her rapier.

"I'm going to enjoy watching you die." Cal put her knife back in her boot. "You deserve to be killed in your sleep more than any other man I killed. Pity you sleep so soundly, isn't it?"

Lu Bu laughed, "You keep bragging, but I haven't seen any results."

"Just you wait." Cal said icily and received a concerned look from Chao.

"Are you done?" Yun came up next to his friends and slammed his spear into the ground. "You're interrupting practice."

"Bye now, darling." Lu Bu smirked. "Hope I see you tonight."

"The only time you'll see me is when it's too late." She snapped

"Promises….." Lu Bu walked away with Chan, blood running down his sleeve.

"So far I've inflicted two wounds, Fengxian. My third will not be a tease."

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"Well we have finally received some information from Guan Yu and Zhang Fei." Zhuge Liang flicked his fan and pushed his long greasy hair back over his shoulder. "My lord are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah…go ahead." Liu Bei looked up at his strategist with tired and weary eyes. The first night away from Shang was always the worst.

"They have taken half of the Nan territory; Sun Ce claimed the other half. That was three months ago. Then they moved on and attacked Wan Castle, where they barely missed capturing Cao Cao. Dian Wei and Cao Ang were killed however, good news. They are moving towards Jingzhou, since Guan Yu feels it will be threatened by Sun Quan in his efforts to prove himself. Guan Yu is sending Zhang Fei back to us with seventy percent of the troops. He doesn't believe it necessary to have a large force at Jingzhou, and I agree."

"Good news." Liu Bei wished Guan Yu would come home. He missed his friend and Fei was never sober anymore.

"Perhaps I could interest you in that tea, sir." Liang asked gently. "You need a good nights rest."

"Yes…perhaps."

"I'll see to it my lord." _Finally!_


	30. Parting Ways

AN: I forgot to mention this earlier, the whole Yue Ying and Yaoi thing is purely a tribute to yueying .net .That site has been an indispensable resource for all of my stories. I was reading through a few chapters a couple days back and realized my AN never made it into that chapter. Whoops. Also portions of these next two chapters have been written since Chapter 11, so this has been the direction the story's been taking the whole time. Finally twenty chapters later……

Chapter 30

Parting Ways

"Let's take care of that wrist." Chao tried to take her hand but she pulled away.

"I have other things to do." She spun on her heels and began to leave.

"Cal…" Yun was worried. She wasn't snapping out of it this time.

"This will end today." She responded coolly.

"Cal, you have to want to quit." Chao watched her stop. "You have to resist it, for me?"

Cal closed her eyes. How quickly she could rid Shu of her mistake. It wouldn't take much to prepare for it…and that was the problem. "I'm too far gone Chao. It's too easy for me, I have not changed." She kept walking and past a concerned Pang Tong on her way to the palace.

"That's bad." Tong looked to the two men standing on the practice field. "So did I miss something?"

"Dammit." Chao ran his hands through his hair. "I don't know how to help her Yun."

"Well you're not helping by standing here, go." Yun pointed his spear in the direction of the palace. "She needs you now. Show her what she'll loose."

"You want me to threaten her?" Chao asked.

"No. If she goes through with it, she'll leave. To spare you." Yun looked to Tong.

"Go on!" Tong smacked him with his staff.

"Stop hitting me on the head!" Chao screamed.

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"My lord." Zhou Yu stared at the map. "That is insane."

Sun Quan took a deep breath. "I knew you would say that. Perhaps I should temporarily relieve you of your duties considering the situation."

Zhou Yu looked at him and blinked. This couldn't be happening. Last month he had accompanied Sun Ce on his campaign, it was great. The two of them together again, fighting side by side, conquering territories left and right. Then…it happened. Ce was always racing off into enemy lines alone, except this time he didn't come back. Da did. She was screaming and crying, pleading with Yu to help her husband. All he could do was run after her, slashing at enemies as they went…but it was too late. Ce was gone. They returned with the corpse of their king, and after a quick burial, Quan took command. Yu barely had time to grieve before Quan lit into him for abandoning his brother. Sun Quan made it perfectly clear that there was only one man at fault for the death of the little conqueror, and that man was Zhou Yu. "Sir, we cannot attack our ally!"

"Liu Bei has grown too powerful. We must attack now, or else my sister will be caught on the wrong side of the lines. Or do you want to have her death on your shoulders too?"

Yu closed his eyes. Ce had instructed Quan to listen to Zhou Yu in the event that something happened to him. However Quan did not know how to handle listening to the man that had let his brother die. So he turned to everyone else….and Lu Meng spoke up. "But Guan Yu would rather die than join us, you have to know that!"

"Why are you so concerned about saving _Shu_ lives?" Quan hissed.

"Blame me for Ce's death if you must, but don't sentence our countrymen to the same fate. If we attack Guan Yu, Liu Bei will retaliate. It will only weaken both of us and allow Cao Cao to crush us all!"

"I have made my decision!" Quan snapped. "I expect you to stay here and keep my sister company, since you are opposed to this campaign."

"Sir, please!"

"You've said enough. Good day Zhou Yu." Quan sneered and turned back to his desk

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"What exactly are you planning to do?" Chao sat down on her bed and looked her in the eye.

"What I want to do." She shook her head. "I still want to, Chao. That's the problem."

"I want to make love to you, but I'm not going to. Not yet. I guarantee that that urge is a lot stronger than yours." He smiled. "I even have you working against me."

"It's not the same." She kicked the dresser. "I can't change. I've been trained to do this since I was little. Nothing but this. That's why my kind is eliminated not retired. We don't know how to be normal."

"Do you love me?"

"What kind of stupid question is that?"

"Answer me then." He waited.

"Yes. I love you Chao." She folded her arms and turned away.

"Then stay with me tonight." He rubbed his knuckled up her thigh. "Please."

"But…."

"You have to let it go." Chao stood and wrapped his arms around her. "Let me give you a reason to."

"Are you telling me…."

"No. I'm not screwing you, but I'd like to sleep next to you." He grinned. "Let me give you a glimpse of the rest of your life before you decide to throw it away."

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Zhao Yun looked up at his friend and smiled. "Do you know what you just wrote?"

"If they're actually words then I'm making progress." Cal rubbed her head.

"I think it's more important to understand what you wrote than to be able to write it." He threw the paper in the fire knowing it was not for anyone else's eyes.

"That's it. I'm going to go kill someone." Cal began to stand and Yun stopped her.

"Sit down." He handed her the pen and paper. "Try again. We can't have you being illiterate can we?"

"I am literate!"

"Not in the language that counts."

"I'm done. Chao's waiting for me."

"Is he now?" Yun tapped his fingers on the desk. "So we can find you in his room if we need you?"

"Yup. Looks like you sleep alone tonight." She kissed his forehead. The past few weeks of sleeping on Yun's couch were nice, but not as nice as Ma Chao's bed was going to be.

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Liu Bei sighed miserably. He had tried to study some Sun Tzu, but found it near impossible to concentrate. The only thing that he could think about was the fact that Sun Shang Xiang had left him. He didn't know why, it didn't seem like a rational thought, but he couldn't help but think it was true. Why wouldn't it be? She had a chance to go home, be with her family and friends and possibly be with a man she really loved. All this time he thought she didn't like children and she was really avoiding any attachments to him. Bei began to sob, wholeheartedly depressed, and took another sip of Zhuge Liang's tea.

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"Oh, you're partially undressed….just like the first time I saw you half-naked." Cal grinned and went over to her love, prodding at his chest.

"Pants stay on though. I don't trust you…..ahhhh and rightly so." Cal had begun kissing his chest and gave his nipple a lick before looking up at him.

"Come on, give in."

"Behave or you sleep in the hall." Chao threatened.

"What's all this?" Cal asked seeing candles and plates of Jade Scallops sitting next to glasses of wine.

"Just a little something special." He smiled and kissed her. "I did tell you I was going to show you the future."

"I shouldn't be won over by this romantic gesture….but I am."

"Good, let's eat."

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Cal rolled out of Ma Chao's bed and yawned. He lay happy and asleep as she dressed. She couldn't help but smile as she watched him, this was really nice. Unfortunately it was time for her to go back to the room she shared with her husband and check on her son, her will to be an attentive mother would diminish once Chao woke up. It was amazing how one night in the arms of the man she loved could convince her to do what was right. It was just before dawn and she knew Lu Bu would be asleep like a log. She wandered into the room and looked around. What was off here? She lit a lantern, knowing the man would never wake up for anything short of a flooding of the valley. Then the hairs rose on her neck as the tent lit up. Everything was gone, including the general. She quickly turned and ran to Lu Xi's crib.

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Xiahou Dun looked up at the messenger as he handed him the scroll. "Sir, it's from Shu."

Dun unraveled the small parchment and stared at it. For so long he had avoided thinking about her, hoping he could just pass it off as a betrayal. But here before him was written proof that she still cared. These words were not meant for Yuan, Cal had never hid her hatred for him, but instead they were meant to ease his pain. If she could only be here…..

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Ma Chao woke up and looked over at the empty spot beside him. Damn, he was hoping to be able to wake her up. He couldn't help but smile, last night was awesome. Now once sex was added into the mix, he wondered if he'd ever be able to leave his bed. The sun was rising and it was time for him to go check on Lotus. His favorite mare was due any day now and once of these mornings he was going to walk into her stall and see a tiny version of her nursing. He dressed and wandered down to the stable.

"Lord Ma! Good news!" the stable hand smiled and pointed into the stall. "You have yourself a brand new colt sir."

Chao ran over and looked down at the foal that stared back at him. "Damn girl, this is a great looking little foal. Maybe there is something to this crossbreeding."

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"Sir?" Jiang Wei knocked lightly on Zhuge Liang's study.

"Has it begun?" Liang's head snapped up.

"Yes sir. Lu Bu moved out last night with Diao Chan and Lu Xi."

"Hmmmm…interesting plan Sima Yi. I do wonder what is in store for our western friend."

"Exactly what she deserves I'm sure." Jiang Wei sat down.

"Then Lu Bu and Quinirius are as good as dead. Well that takes care of a few of our problems, eh?"

"So we are back to Plan B?" Wei asked.

"Yes. I always did like that plan better."

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Lui Bei was out watching the sun rise with a bottle of wine in his hand. Why was Shang taking so long to return from Wu territory, certainly her mother couldn't need her for that long? Even if the woman was clingy, Shang would be back in his arms-but she wasn't. She had gone home for good, leaving him for someone her own age. He took another drink from the bottle and sighed.

Cal was about to say something to him, but looking at his condition-she thought better of it. Instead of approaching the emperor as he sat wallowing in his misery on the hill, she turned back to look at the army below her. Who else could she tell about her need to hunt down her husband, his mistress and her kidnapped son? Then she really took a good look at the army below, for the first time in weeks_. Where the hell was everybody? _The Shu army was in complete disarray. Come to think about it, she hadn't seen Zhuge Liang at all-not that she would have complained about that. Guan Yu was protecting Jingzhou, Zhang Fei was drunk and Zhao Yun was in his room recovering from his wound. Ma Chao, obviously, had been with her, Pang Tong was nestled in a pile of concubines, and Wei Yan was out playing hunter-gatherer with Huang Zhong. And the most annoying thing was both Shang and Ying were gone too. Then a sick feeling began to form itself in her gut, a feeling from a lifetime ago, a feeling that signaled that all hell was about to break loose. It was that feeling she knew to trust, because it had saved her ass so many times. If they were attacked, the Shu army would be annihilated.

Cal bust into Pang Tong's room and kicked off concubines. "Out! All of you!" She jumped on Pang Tong and shook him to wake him up.

"Hey baby." Tong reached up to grab her breast. Curiously he opened his eyes to see the Shu officer looking quite annoyed. "I thought you were too small to be one of my girls."

"Wake up, I need you."

"Well then," He squeezed her breast again and put his other hand on her ass.

She slapped him, "Not that way. Wake up."

"Why?"

"Because this army is in shambles. We have officers all over China and the ones that are here are too busy drinking or fucking to notice what is going on."

"Oh?" He was still half asleep.

"If we're attacked, we're screwed. Without the guidance of the officers, the men have just started doing whatever they want. I need you to help me."

"Why?" he began to nod back off.

"Tong, Lu Bu's run off with Diao Chan and taken Lu Xi with him. I need to get my son back, but someone needs to put this army back together."

Tong looked up at her and stood up, watching her slide off of him. "Back to work then." The fledging Pheonix squinted as he emerged from his room and onto his balcony. The scene outside was much worse then Cal had described it. "Who do we have then?"

"Zhao Yun and Ma Chao, everyone else is too occupied." She said disheartened. How had she allowed it to get this bad? Dammit!

"Good bring them here."

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"I can't believe this." Zhao Yun looked around at the army.

"I have underestimated Zhou Yu. He is a crafty bastard. He lured Shang back with her own brother and Ying….."

"With Zhou Tai." Cal finished.

"Of course Shang's absence would leave Lui Bei devastated, anyone could have seen that when we were in Jian Ye. Yu must have found out about Ying and Tai from Sun Quan and exploited it. Bastard." Tong emphasized with a smack of his staff into his hand.

"What about Lu Bu?" Chao asked

"That is not the concern. We need to regroup, or else we are as good as dead. Yun you need to go drag Shang and Ying back home. Chao, Guan Yu needs to be with us, instruct him to abandon Jingzhou. I will put this army back together while you are gone."

"What are you going to be doing?" Chao asked his lover.

"I'm going to Bazhou to murder my husband and take back my son."

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"Hey." Ma Chao walked up silently behind Cal who was mindlessly packing for her journey.

"Hi." She had lapsed back into the state of mind that she needed to be in to return to the life she struggled to give up the previous night.

"I want you to come back to me." He said quietly.

"Don't forget this is what I'm trained for, I always come back."

"Cal, I don't mean it that way. I.." he pulled her away from her horse and turned her towards him. "I don't want to let you slip through my fingers again. When you come back, I want to it to be to me."

His sincere look puzzled her and she shook of her trance. "What are you talking about?"

"I know you are ashamed of what you used to do….what you're about to do again. Let this be the last time, honey. Come back and let me take you as my wife and raise your son as my own."

She looked at him and her heart fluttered. "Chao…"

"These past few weeks have been incredible; I don't want it to end."

She felt her breath begin to become irregular, something she had never experienced. "Chao, when I'm with you….I feel things I never knew existed."

He kissed her passionately. "Be careful."

"You too, not that there's ever anything a miss in Jingzhou." She gave him a hug and whispered, "I love you Chao."

"We'll be together soon darling. I love you too."

"This life…what I once was dies tonight with him."

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Zhou Yu stood alone on the pier waiting for the arrival of his princess. Xiao had left earlier to comfort her sister. Da was still a wreck and he suspected she would always be. Sun Quan had marched out three days earlier, to attack Guan Yu and ensure the demise of Wu and Shu. How easy Quan was making it for Cao Cao. He picked his long pale face up as saw the ramp drop.

"Where the hell is everyone!" Sun Shang Xiang growled as she stepped off the boat.

Zhou Tai never moved a step, instead his observant eyes scanned the fields. "The army has moved out."

"Without its strategist?" Yue Ying stared down at the ashen Zhou Yu.

"Come inside; enjoy our hospitality while you still can." Zhou Yu turned and let his shoulders fall, he shuffled down the pier.

"Zhou Yu! Dammit tell me what's going on!" Shang hollered.

"Lord Sun Quan has moved out to attack Jingzhou."

"WHAT?!?" Shang screamed. "He dare defies the alliance that we have?"

"Why are you here Zhou Yu?" Ying inched down the ramp.

"You advised against it, didn't you?" Zhou Tai knew how childish Quan could be.

"Yes." Yu turned back to them. "I have been relieved of my position due to my irresponsibility."  
Ying was startled. Zhou Yu irresponsible? Never. "What are you speaking of?"

"I could not save Ce. The blame rests solely on my shoulders."

Shang walked up and hit him. The moping Zhou Yu slammed into the worn boards of the pier and looked up angrily. "That is bullshit. Get yourself together Gongjing! Ce is dead; don't let his empire die with it! Come on, we have a war to stop." She stormed off to the castle.

"Well? I know you can't stand the thought of me advising her." Ying ran past him and caught up to Shang.

"You are not to blame." Tai stared down at him. "But if you allow this to happen, you will be."

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Ma Chao and Zhao Yun looked out over the side of their boat at the turns of the river ahead. They would ride together until they reached the town of Nanjun, where Chao would depart to ride to Jingzhou. Yun would then continue on alone to Jian Ye. The winds were good and they were making extremely good time.

"So……keep your virginity intact last night?" Yun asked with a sly grin.

"I'm not a virgin." Chao pushed Yun over. "But yes."

"This will all be over soon." Yun said thoughtfully. "Well at least the Lu Bu dilemma."

"I wish there was some other way…..I had her convinced last night."

"Chao, it's the only way. Once he is gone, the remnants of her old life will go with him. Then you can be together without that lingering over your heads."

"I can't wait to get home." Chao grinned and tussled Yun's hair.

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"Alright, this unit is definitely loyal to me." Shang pointed to the map.

"One brigade? Is that all?" Ying asked as Zhou Yu paced.

"If you march out along the river road you'll avoid all their scouts. One brigade will be able to make it to Jingzhou in time, two brigades are questionable." Zhou Yu tapped the desk with his fingers. He had initially struggled with the notion of working against his own side, but Quan was trying to destroy the empire. He owed his participation to all those who died protecting it.

"Tai, will you be able to sail a small fleet up the Chang Jiang for us?" Ying asked, not knowing if he would participate.

"Yes."

"Then we sail to this landing then march to Jingzhou. If we are successful, it will be up to us to undo any harm that has been done." Ying looked to everyone.

"I'll see to it, I'm the one caught in the middle here." Shang replied

"You will have my assistance as well." Zhou Yu agreed. "That is if I make it through this with my head."

"Same." Tai nodded.

"Good. Then let's go save Guan Yu."

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"Now, my husband, you are at my mercy." Cal whispered as she squatted above Lu Bu on his regal bed in Nazhou castle with two daggers poised at his throat. "Awake, so that you can see my face as I a slaughter you like a pig."

Lu Bu opened his eyes and looked up at her. _How had she made it this far? How could she get on top of him without him noticing?_ He didn't do anything, it would not help him. "You _are_ good at this."

"You would have never had to find out if you hadn't taken my son with you."

"He is my son. He will be great, but not if you turn him into a Shu slave. I will make the decisions concerning him."

"Not anymore." She pinched his throat between the two blades but suddenly the room was filled with light and another man came into the room. A man she hated the smell of.

"Well look who has returned to her old ways." Cao Cao walked into the room and sat down in a chair to the left of the bed. "Please don't let me interrupt."


	31. The Race for Jingzhou

Chapter 31

The Race for Jingzhou

"Are we ready?" Sun Shang Xiang asked annoyed. Herding her one brigade onto the boats was taking forever.

"No!" Zhou Yu brushed past her, scrolls under one arm and a flute in his hand. "I'm coming too."

"What made you change your mind?" Shang asked.

"Da Qiao crying into my shoulder for the 25th straight day last night." He huffed and looked back at the crying Qiaos at the end of the pier. "Besides, you need help."

"But…"

"I know what I'm doing. You're right, I owe Sun Ce this much." He turned and boarded the boat.

Zhou Tai walked Mariner up and cocked his head. "So pretty boy is going nautical again is he?"

"I'm not going to argue." Shang shrugged.

"Great. That means he's going to be blasting that damned flute all night long. Just when I thought I'd have some peace and quiet….." Tai mumbled and led his horse up the ramp.

"All aboard or get left behind!" Shang hollered and ran up onto the boat. "Let's go!"

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Guan Yu yawned and looked over at his son drilling his regiment. Guan Ping was becoming a good general, he just needed a bit more confidence. His other two sons, Xing and Suo weren't doing as well. Xing was struggling with the notion of fire arrows whizzing through the air aimed at him, and Suo was having difficulty not being his father's bodyguard anymore. But the two boys were still so young, Suo at 15 and Xing at 16 that he wasn't overly worried. He was beginning to wish he didn't send Zhang Fei home; he could use a bit of company right now. Maybe even a poorly constructed song about genitalia.

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"What is _he_ doing here?" She hissed angrily at Lu Bu. She wanted to kill him more than ever, but if Cao Cao was here….Xi was in trouble.

"You're asking the wrong person." Lu Bu answered and looked over at Cao Cao who grinned smugly.

"Ugh Nuuh!" Lu Xi shouted happily as Diao Chan carried him into the room.

"Damn you!" She snapped as she watched Lu Bu's face turn to fury. His stupidity had led to this and he would die for it.

"Chan, what…."

"What I have always done my lord, use you." Chan held the boy tightly.

"What a horrible situation for such loving parents." Cao Cao stood up and walked over to the bed. "Now, do I really need to explain myself to you both?"

"Leave him out of this, you bastard." Cal wanted to bury her dagger in his heart but she saw the blade Diao Chan carried and her heart fell.

"I think not. Now give me your blades." Cao held out his hand.

She pulled her weapons off Lu Bu's throat. How desperately she wanted to eliminate him now, but she would need his help to save their son. She watched her husband stare viciously at Cao Cao, but that was all he could do. "Here."

"Good girl. Now let me make everything very clear to both of you. Lu Bu will be taking Dian Wei's place, since that vacancy has yet to be filled. Cal I do believe this accomplishment has enabled me to see your true use. How you could hide such a talent from your lord, it is a shame really. Your son will remain with Diao Chan, and her bodyguards. If either of you decides to take advantage of my kindness, well it would be a very unhealthy choice for Lu Xi."

Cal closed her eyes and sat down on Lu Bu's abdomen. When she opened them again she saw Lu Bu struggling with his rage. She looked down at his clenched fists and saw the blood rushing to his face. There was nothing either one of them could do. Then she heard the words she hoped she would never hear.

"However, I do believe there is the issue of your previous betrayal, isn't there. Not to mention countless other grievances that must be discussed." Cao Cao ran his hand down her face.

Lu Bu turned to look at his wife when he felt her tremble. She had never exhibited any sign of fear around him but here with Cao Cao she was shaken. "Keep your hands off my wife." He growled.

Cao Cao chuckled. "Yes I do suppose she is the wife of my newest general isn't she? But Lu Bu she has had this coming. And as your new lord, I must stress the importance of maintaining a strict code of discipline. I am actually making an exception, considering her value. I will take into consideration that she is your wife, however her punishment will remain severe."

Lu Bu lay motionless and as soon as Cao took his hand off her she shook again. Cal's eyes momentarily betrayed her feelings of hopelessness, but then he saw them glaze over with her anger. "No." He finally said.

Cal shook her head and said quietly, "It is fine, he is right. I deserve this; I must pay for my mistakes." She gave him a half-assed reassuring smile, but couldn't pull it off and shook her head. Barely whispering she said "We must protect Xi, no matter what." Damn you, protect him. She closed her eyes and focused. Lu Bu's sudden desire to protect her made her sick. The son of a bitch never knew when to stop. He was a human pendulum, swinging back and forth with amazing regularity. The bloodlust was strong now, stronger than it had ever been. She wanted his life….but she needed his alliance. If Xi was going to be safe once this was all over, Lu Bu was going to have to help.

"Come then." Cao Cao waited.

"Protect him." Cal growled as she took Cao's waiting hand. This asshole needed to die too….and he underestimated her abilities. He always had. But she had no way of keeping a dagger out of her kid's throat if she killed Cao. No…she would just have to let him have his way until she thought of something.

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Liu Bei sat at the table and picked at his breakfast. Earlier, Zhuge Liang had patted him on the shoulder and handed him more tea instead of going over the reports. Then the prime minister and his vassal ran off to be productive somewhere. He honestly didn't care.

Pang Tong walked into the dining hall and stopped in his tracks. Liu Bei looked horrible. "Sir? What's wrong?" Tong shuffled over and slipped into the seat next to him.

"I think…Shang's gone." His lower lip quivered. "For good."

"What would make you think that?" Tong was shocked. He knew his lord missed his wife, but this was outrageous.

"I just…have a feeling."

"Hey, man, that girl loves you. You know that!"

"But she loves her family too."

Tong was perplexed. It was only a few days ago that they had been in the peach orchard. What the hell was going on with him? He looked into the emperor's eyes and saw a glaze over them. "Have you been taking any drugs….um prescriptions?"

"Just this tea. Kongming gave it to me." Liu Bei handed him the beverage.

Tong sniffed it. How odd….why would Liang give him something? Tong was the one with the experience with medicinal herbs and the like. "Did he say what it was?"

"Does it matter?" Bei asked. "Does anything really matter anymore? I'm a bad king Tong. I've let everyone down. Me, The Han, Shang, all of you."

"Hey, what are you talking about? Everyone is thrilled with you, especially your wife. Sir, hey, look at me." Tong made the emperor focus on his eyes. "Ok, here's what's happening, try and stay with me. Lu Bu followed Diao Chan off to Banzou and kidnapped Lu Xi. Cal's gone after them. Ma Chao is going to go get Guan Yu and Zhao Yun is out to bring Shang and Ying home. I'm trying to reorganize this army because it's begun to deteriorate after that last battle. I sent out scouts to locate Huang Zhong and Wei Yan. Together we're going to whip this army back into shape and wait for everyone to come home."

"My son hates me too." Bei moaned.

"Did you get anything I just said to you?" Tong asked.

"Yeah, we're doomed."

"What the hell are you drinking? Tong looked into the dainty cup.

"You'd all be better off without me." Bei sighed.

"Yes…" Tong looked at him with a worried brow. "Because all countries without a king do so well these days…."

"Maybe I should end it…let some abler hands take over."

Tong smashed his staff down on Liu Bei's head and watched him plant his face into his breakfast. "Now talk like that will get you a concussion. What the hell is this stuff?" Tong looked at the tea. If Liang was doping the king, as prime minister he would have a lot to gain. Suddenly Tong felt completely alone. Everyone was gone….except Ma Dai and Zhang Fei. Two people who were trying desperately to prove they could dilute their own blood with musou wine and live to tell about it. Tong looked over at Liu Bei, was there a chance he could carry him back to his room? Nope. Well there was always that serving cart….

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Zhou Yu put his flute down and looked up at Zhou Tai. "What are you staring at me for?"

"Do you have to play that?" Tai asked

"Tai, why don't you go look over those maps with Ying, huh?" Shang offered.

"Good idea…." Ying smiled at her man.

"Sure." Tai huffed and followed Ying into her cabin.

"You don't have to do this." Shang said

"Yes I do. As master strategist it is my duty to protect the kingdom."

"I thought you were relieved." Shang giggled.

"Don't make me regret helping you." Yu sneered.

"You and Tai are both going to be in danger…..if you wanted you could come back with us."

"Princess, why don't you leave the decision making to me? Tai and I are both officers of Wu, we will die officers of Wu."

"But Quan…."

"Quan will be pissed yes." Yu tapped his flute on his thigh. "As will Liu Bei. I doubt he will ignore the fact that we have attacked his brother unprovoked."

"I hope I can convince him otherwise." Shang turned to the west.

"You blame me too, don't you?" Yu began to shine his flute with his sleeve.

"No." Shang looked over at the man that she has spent her childhood in love with. Now all she could think about was Liu Bei. "I know how Ce was. Charge into the deepest shit and come out grinning. It was bound to catch up with him."

"Hmmm." He brought the instrument back up to his lips but before he could start to play he heard something that sounded like a scream.

"AHH. Oh God Tai!"

Yu looked to Shang and then back at the cabin. "Serves that bastard Kongming right." He smiled for the first time in months.

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"Sir!" The first mate called out. "Nanjun is around the corner. You should ready your horse, my lord."

"Well looks like this is where I leave you." Chao looked over at Yun who had become such a close friend.

"You've got the easy assignment." Yun shook his head. "I'm going to have to pry Ying off of Zhou Tai. My spear isn't long enough to get enough leverage."

"Be careful Zilong."

"You too Mengqi."

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Sun Quan clenched his fists and moved to the front of his lines. Lu Xun rode up. "They're pulling out of Jingzhou."

"Yes sir, their scouts must have alerted them. Guan Yu is no fool. He knows he is heavily outnumbered." Xun looked over at the small group of Shu soldiers, probably only 5,000 men. "They are heading to Jiang Liang."

"Then we will attack their rear as they retreat."

"Yes sir." Xun nodded. He wanted to be the master strategist but not at this cost. Zhou Yu was left at home, humiliated, and he was helping his lord destroy the alliance that cost Sun Jian his daughter. To make matters worse, Quan was being a complete asshole about everything. He was super pissed about Zhou Tai being in Jian Ye and not with him. Xun had to grin to himself. At least he didn't need a bodyguard to help him; he could kick some major ass if he wanted.

"Then let us move into these fields outside Jingzhou and regroup." Quan grunted.

"Yes my lord." Xun nodded and watched Quan trot off down the road.

Gan Ning walked up. "Man this is fucking ridiculous."

"Guan Yu would rather die then serve Wu." Huang Gai approached and hung his head. How many more people would have to die? "We should be delivering these kinds of casualties to Cao Cao, not our ally."

"Yeah." Xun shook his head. "Our lord is also irritated that Shu has not lost any officers, while Wu has already lost so many."

"Jian, Ce then that poor Taischi Ci who we never even got to know." Ning shook his head.

"They've all been ambushes. Shu almost lost Pang Tong to an ambush." Gai pointed out

"Almost." Xun reminded them.

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Lu Bu heard her scream and his immediate reaction was to run for the door. Diao Chan called to him, "Now my lord, you know better." He let his hand fall from the door then turned on her.

"You know better." She smiled and bounced Xi on her knee.

"How could you?" he wanted to crush her head in his hands. Another scream broke the silence.

Zhen Ji burst into the room and sneered at Lu Bu before going over to Diao Chan. "Do you know what he's doing to her?"

Chan covered Xi's ears, "Now Ji."

"Do you know how long I've waited for that? Now he wastes it on some cheap little whore." She smashed a vase with her flute.

"Easy, he'll want more."

"No, he only wants to do it to Lu Bu's wife." She looked over at the livid man. "You want to know what kind of punishment he's come up with for your woman?"

"I'll kill you all." He was too angry to say anything else. He turned and kicked the chair that Cao Cao had sat in against the wall. It shattered into tiny wood fragments. She didn't deserve this…no one did. He heard her yelp again.

"Actually I think it's more the fact that she's Ma Chao's lover than anything Ji." Chan smirked. "Our lord knows his favorite toy is not attached to her spouse."

"Yeah." Ji smashed a table with her flute. "Speaking of…I thought I instructed you to take him away from her."

"I tried….he resisted." Chan let Xi clutch her finger all the while knowing she was under Lu Bu's fierce gaze. "He truly loves her."

"Good. It will make it all the easier to kill him."

"Pity. He is one fine looking man."

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Zhao Yun looked out over the murky waters of the Chang Jiang and frowned. How much longer was this seriously going to take?

"Sir! There's another ship approaching…..actually a small fleet!"

"WHAT!?" Yun looked over the bow and stared at the ships coming at them. "Who the hell are they?"

"Those are Wu ships sir." The ship's captain walked up and stared at the first ship. "That guy looks familiar."

Yun strained his eyes to see the figure on the main deck. It was a big guy, flowing red cape and huge katana. "Zhou Tai?"

"Yeah that's his name!" Captain Lan nodded.

"What the hell?" Yun watched as Tai recognized him and shouted down something to the deck below. To Yun's amazement three new faces appeared. Ying, Shang and Zhou Yu?

"Shall we move to intercept?" Lan asked

"Yeah." Once the boats were linked and Yun was safety on board, Zhou Tai told Captain Lan to shove off an be quick about it. Yun looked at him. "Wait a second! I want to know what the hell is going on."

"I'm not stopping you from talking." Tai stormed off. "I have a deadline."

"Ying?" Yun looked over at her.

"Sun Quan's attacking Guan Yu." Ying let her shoulders fall. "We're hoping we're not too late to provide reinforcements."

"Who told you that?" Yun glared at Zhou Yu. "Him?"

"He's helping us!" Shang insisted.

"And why would you trust him?"

"What are you trying to get at General Zhao?" Zhou Yu stood up and met his gaze.

"Why are you here Yun?" Ying asked.

"To bring you back home. To reunite the army that someone tried to destroy from within."

"What are you talking about?" Shang grabbed his arm.

"Why don't you ask him? He's the one behind it." Yun pointed his spear at Yu.

"Imbecile." Yu drew his sword "You know I won't stand for false accusations."

"Easy boys." Shang pushed Yun's spear aside with her chakram. She turned to see Ying move in and block the path of the Ancients sword with her scythe. "Yun, what's going on?"

"Lu Bu ran off with Dian Chan and Lu Xi, so Cal went to kill him. Ma Chao went to Jingzhou to bring back Guan Yu and I was heading to Jian Ye to drag you two back."

"Who's left in Cheng Du?" Ying asked concerned.

"Tong is trying to regroup the army and he's probably found Wei Yan and Huang Zhong by now. Zhuge Liang, Jiang Wei and Zhang Fei are there, but they're all involved in something. Drinking, reading, screwing. Whatever. Bei is…."

"What about him!" Shang asked, her voice betraying her panic.

"He's just really depressed that's all. Really depressed….I mean he's drinking."

"What?" Shang couldn't believe it. "Why?"

"I thought maybe you two had a fight or something….he usually misses you, but this is really severe."

"Hold on!" Zhou Yu pushed past Ying. "Did you say you let Diao Chan take away three of your people? Didn't you get my warning? I wrote a letter to Zhuge Liang, hell Shang even brought it back to him!"

"What warning?" Ying asked and the other two Shu officers mirrored her confused look.

"Diao Chan is working for Wei." Zhou Yu watched the words sink in. "Sima Yi brought her in for this."

"Oh my god….Cal is walking into a trap." Yun gripped his spear.

"So you thought I lured these girls back to Wu for what purpose?" Yu asked.

"To weaken us."

"Yeah, but Liang was the one who insisted that I come along." Ying began to think. "And he is the one who neglected to do anything about the letter."

"He's an asshole, but a traitor? Zhuge Liang?" Shang asked.

"He's capable of anything he sets his mind to." Zhou Yu rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Damn him. I told you you'd need my help."

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Ma Chao galloped along the road to Jingzhou, but noticed a sea of red ahead of him. It must be the fork in the road that led to Jiangling. But what the hell was Wu doing here…..unless they were attacking Guan Yu. Chao pulled the bay colt he borrowed from Dai to a halt. There was only one way to find out. He turned around and found the small pass that lead to the Jiangling road. It was nothing more than a small goat path but it would do. He pressed the colt, named Hawk, for a better speed. God help these Wu bastards if they were attacking Guan Yu.

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Cao Cao wiped the blood off his hands with a towel and sat down. Somehow it was so much more satisfactory when she was fighting him a bit. "Come here."

Cal picked her head up and crawled over to him. All she could think about was Ma Chao and how she was probably never going to see him again. If she could only get Xi out of here….she winced as Cao grabbed her chin. "Sir?"

He let go of her chin and put her head on his thigh so that he could stroke her head. "Do you think that was adequate for all your mistakes? Did you think about killing me? Don't lie"

"Yes."

"Well then think about what you denied me by leaving me for Lui Bei. Think about how you could have killed Dong Zhou for me, before Hu Lao Gate. Then maybe even the Ma family. What a mess that was. One old soldier and two sons and it turned out to be a small battle. Blood everywhere, but you could have taken care of that for me. You would have even taken care of Ma Chao if I had asked. Right?"

"I knew I left at the right time." She saw him take his sword belt and tried to move, but his hand held her down by her hair. Suddenly there was a sting across her face and blood was running down her lips.

"Now I knew that defiance was lurking in there somewhere. Need I remind you of who is right next door? Maybe you would like to see him bleed in your place…"

"No…..please. I apologize."

"How amusing that a murderer has become such a protective mother. Now as I was saying, you would have taken care of Ma Chao for me wouldn't you?"

"Yes, I would have eliminated all those who defied you." She answered it knowing it was true. Had she stayed, Cao Cao would have fewer enemies.

"You will trade his life then for Lu Xi's. That is if you survive this." He brushed her hair away from the blood trickling down her face and neck.

"If you so desire, my lord." She closed her eyes again. _Please let me die now._ She closed her eyes and began to think of a way to get Xi away from him….suddenly a plan formed. There was no way she could kill Ma Chao. She must have changed after all. Too bad no one would ever know.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Now say that again?" Huang Zhong stared down at Pang Tong.

"I think Liang is drugging our emperor." Tong played with his staff. "For what purpose I do not know."

"Asshole…Must….Die!" Wei Yan growled and looked over at the palace.

"We can't just execute him for something ewe can't prove." Tong turned back to the tents housing their army. "We need to get this army back together first and keep our eye on him."

"What proof do you need? Liu Bei is fuckin suicidal!" Zhong snapped.

"Look, we need to wait for the others. That's all we can do. We are spread very thin right now and attacking our prime minister is going to be really bad." Tong shrugged. "We need to focus on the first priority. The army. Liang won't do anything, if he is planning to, if there is a chance he'll loose everything in the process."

"True. If the army can't hold its own then Cheng Du will fall."

"Lu Bu?" Yan queried.

"Dunno." Tong shook his head. "I don't think either one of them would work with each other. I think Lu Bu is doing what he always does, taking care of himself."

"Not….anymore." Yan grinned. Cal probably was on her way back now.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Guan Yu turned and watched Guan Ping come flying down the road. "Father! The rear guard has been routed!"

"Shit!" Yu looked to Suo and Xing. "Keep pushing the men forward. Ping and I will go halt their advance. GO!" he roared and watched the two boys scatter with their new assignments.

"This could be the end." Ping looked at his father. "I'm glad it will be fighting with you."

"Thanks son." He patted Ping's arm. "Let's give your brothers a good start huh?" He spurred his horse into a gallop and headed through the hordes of fleeing men. Ping was right behind him when they found the Wu troops. "I am Guan Yu! Stand and fight!"

"I am Guan Ping! Fight and Die!" Ping launched off his horse and into the crowd.

Yu shook his head. Stupid kid was just like him. "Roar blue Dragon!" He plowed into the red masses with a musou.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Can't this piece of shit move any faster?" Zhao Yun hollered up to the main deck.

"Ying, shut him up before I do." Tai growled.

Ying squeezed his ass and grinned. She loved him in pirate mode. "Yes Captain." She giggled.

"I can't believe this turns you on."

"You turn me on, Tai. Everything about you." She looked down at the expectant Zhao Yun. "Zilong, don't make me come down there."

"Ying…"

"Yun." Ying pointed to the waters of the Chang Jiang. "You'll end up in that nasty ass river being dragged from the back of this piece of shit if you don't stop your bitching."

"Keelhauling's better." Tai grinned.

"Keelhaul…"

"When you tie a guy to a rope that passes under your keel and you pull him from one side to the other. The poor bastard gets ripped across the barnacles on each swipe and gets chopped up." Tai looked down at her. "Don't believe me? Ask Gan Ning next time you see him."

"Better shut up now Zilong. Tai's got some pretty nasty punishments lurking in the back of his head." Ying rubbed Tai's chest, licked his bicep and purred.

"Yeah that's right. Big fierce pirate with a lady strategist licking his arm. Don't know why I never tried this approach before."

Yun turned away from the main deck and looked back out across the water. "Is that a port or am I seeing things?"

"That must be Nanjun." Zhou Yu swooshed up and pointed his finger to the map. "I suspect that Sun Quan landed here at Jingzhou itself. So that means Guan Yu would be escaping towards Jiangling. We must put in here and take this road to the west. I can only hope he makes it that far."

"Me too." Yun rubbed his head. Suddenly everything was going wrong. Cal was probably in Wei hands; Diao Chan took Lu Xi for a reason. Ma Chao was heading into the enemy camp at Jingzhou not knowing Wu was attacking. Now they were probably too late to help Guan Yu….as if Shang's brigade would really help stop an entire army.

"Hey." Shang walked up. She watched both men grunt and Zhou Yu's eyes suddenly light up. "What?"

"If Diao Chan took Lu Xi then she was anticipating Cal coming after them quickly. Where did they go? Because I suspect Cao Cao is nearby." Yu asked.

"Bazhou." Yun muttered. It was true. Chan wouldn't be so stupid as to have to transport an enraged assassin across the country. So Cao Cao came down to see to it personally…damn. He sighed and put his head down on the rail. It was too late to save her too.

"And where Cao Cao is his army is sure to be in the proximity. I'd guess Hanzhong." Yu felt like he was reading off at list of dead after a battle. But the battle hadn't started yet.

"Then he is close enough to attack Cheng Du." Shang gasped.

"He'd still be two hundred miles away." Zhou Yu tried to deliver the better half of the news.

"That's two hundred miles closer than we are." Yun moaned.

"We have the river, he doesn't." Yu added.

"If we are still here by morning." Yun grumbled.

"Hang on Xuande. I'm coming." Shang muffled a sob.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"SIR!" Pang De raced into Cheng Du and came to a sliding halt in from of Wei Yan and Pang Tong.

"Speak." Yan grunted.

"Cao Cao's army is approaching from HanZhong!"

"WHAT??!?" both Tong and Yan stared at him.

"I didn't see him or Sima Yi…but it was his complete army."

Tong looked away. The only thing important enough to pull those two men away from the army was…."He's got Cal."

"He's got bad luck." De reported. "They're being slammed with every bit of bad weather possible."

"We….move." Yan smacked Tong back to reality.

"Yes….to Bazhou."

"Souldn't we tell the prime minister?" De asked.

"Yeah….go ahead." Tong looked away with a tear in his eye.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Alright pull back!" Guan Yu took another hit to the left arm and winced. He was getting tired and making mistakes.

"Yes sir!" Ping began to back peddle so he was closer to his father.

"You go no further!" Lu Meng raced down the road and swung out of the saddle. "Swear loyalty to Sun Quan and your lives will be spared."

"You can't be serious." Guan Yu actually began to laugh. "You think I would break my oath to my brother? You must have me confused with Lu Bu."

"Well you are both about the same height." Ping shrugged.

"Don't mock me." Meng growled. "If you will not agree to those terms than we will have to give Lord Sun your heads instead."

"You think that scares me? I'm more appalled at your Lord's lack of honor. How can he ignore our allegiance?" Yu raised his weapon.

"Then you have made your decision. Prepare to die."

"Not by your hand." Yu snapped he turned as he heard hoof beats approaching quickly from behind. "Holy shit."

"Reinforcements…"Ping muttered in disbelief.

"You backstabbing Wu bastards! You will taste the steel of the Stallion Fury!" Ma Chao galloped up and held his spear aloft blasting a shot of lighting across the ground. Lu Meng's men crumpled, leaving the Wu general standing alone.

Meng took a step back. His confidence was beginning to waver. All alone on a small road getting ready to attack three Shu officers was a bit much for him to handle. "Uh…." He was flung back by Chao's horseback musou. After being beaten and bloodied he was tossed twenty feet down the road. Instinct told him to get up and run back home.

"Man am I glad to see you!" Guan Yu smacked Chao's leg starting Hawk.

"What the hell is going on? Why is Wu attacking?" Chao barely noticed the colt rear.

"Why are you here?" Ping asked "And where are you hiding your men?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Thank you Pang De. We will remember this next time promotions come around." Zhuge Liang bowed at De left. "God dammit!" He threw his fan across the room.

"So we are stalled once again." Jiang Wei sighed. "I am beginning to fear the fates are against us."

"Or just teasing to see how very determined we are." Liang bit his lip. "Give Liu Bei the antidote. We need him for morale."

"Sir." Wei picked through the vials of medication.

"Find out where everyone is." Liang added.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

After the encounter with Lu Meng, Chao, Yu and Ping all rode for Jiangling. It would be a desperate attempt, but they were going to try and defend the fort. Chao was furious. The thought of Wu betraying them made him want to gallop through their lines and take Sun Quan's life. Then there was the dire situation they were all in…..this was going to be bad. He looked over at Guan Yu, "What do the fortifications of Jiangling look like? Have they been upgraded any?"

"Nope." Yu shook his head.

"How many men do you have?" Chao asked.

"Less than five thousand." Yu responded.

"More like less than three." Ping added.

"Shit."

"Exactly." Yu galloped through the gate and was greeted by his sons.

"So glad you made it back father!" Xing smiled happily.

"You are hurt!" Suo realized his father was bleeding.

"Hi Ma Chao! Where'd you come from?" Xing looked over at the newly arrived tiger general.

"I was just out for a ride and poof!" Chao raised his hands in an effort to be dramatic. "There these two were trying to hog all the attention."

"Yeah, that's exactly what we were doing." Yu pushed Chao into his horse. "If we live through this I'm going to buy you dinner."

"Because we're forced to purchase meals so often." Suo shook his head. "Everyone is hunkered down ready to defend. We sent messengers to Cheng Du."

"Great they'll be back in two months." Ping rolled his eyes.

"Well then fine! Oh great Guan warrior! What would you have done?" Suo hollered.

"Kids! We have bigger concerns, like that big red wave coming at us." Yu pointed at the approaching Wu army.

"ARCHERS!" Xing smirked. "LIGHT YOUR ARROWS!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"This is a feeble attempt to thwart us!" Quan chuckled. "How foolish to think that will stop us."

"They are desperate my lord." Lu Xun pitied them. "They are going to do whatever they can."

"Just keep attacking." Quan huffed. "They can not withstand full assaults very long."

"We will loose a lot of men sir!" Lu Xun protested.

"You must be willing to pay with blood if you want to shed it." Quan stared down at the young man. "Maybe I should have left you back home with your master if you are so reluctant."

"I am just exploring alternatives sir. I do not wish to cause more damage to us than them. My apologies." _Dickhead_

"Sorry. I am just anxious to get this over with." _Before Liu Bei finds out._

"I understand my lord." __

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Cal's going to be waiting for me." Chao looked over at Guan Yu as they prepared themselves to charge out the gates. "And I won't be coming back to her."

"Chao, why don't you…"

"Don't even utter the words or you'll die right here." Chao waved his spear at his comrade.

"Sorry. My whole family is going to be wiped out…..I don't want to take you down with us."

"We fight til the end, Guan Yu. That is our vow to our lord. As Tiger Generals."

"Indeed." Yu looked out over the enemy forces.

"I hope she'll understand….it will be the second promise I break. The first was to avenge my family."

"Chao. I will be honored to fight with you today." Yu smiled. "For Liu Bei!" He raised his spear.

"Come men!" Chao hollered. "Let's drive this Wu shit back where it belongs….in the Chang Jiang!"

"READY!!!!" Guan Yu boomed. "CHARGE!!!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Sir?" Jiang Wei looked around Kongming's study. "Prime Minister?"

"WHAT?!" Liang snapped. He looked up from his chair overlooking the city of Cheng Du.

"The emperor is missing." Wei shook his head. "Surprisingly he is past out in Pang Tong's room."

"Well my old classmate is on to us then. Too bad we did not find this out until _after_ Wei Yan and Huang Zhong came home."

Wei looked away. He knew that tone, it meant that Liang considered it to be his fault. "Sorry, Master Liang."

"Well we have had many obstacles so far another will not waver my resolve."

AN: Yes, I couldn't resist a cliffhanger. Sorry.:-) I'll post Chapter 32 tomorrow so it's not all that horrible. I never realized this was going to become such an epic…and the sad part is I still don't see an end to it soon. Sorry for anyone who started reading this late in the game. It probably going to have as many chapters as the original ROTK when I'm done. I can get so long winded.


	32. The Defense of Jiangling

Chapter 32

The Defense of Jiangling

Cal crumpled in a heap in the corner, landing where Cao Cao had thrown her. He was finished, for now. She couldn't think of anything but the pain….she never felt so willing to die in her whole life. She wanted Chao, and no one else; he would make it all better, he promised. One deep breath was all she needed to calm herself down and remember her duty. He mission was to protect Liu Bei, that was what she had to do. If it meant that he had to ignore her love for Ma Chao…then that was what the task required. Chao was not here, he could not help her. As always, she was going to have to get herself out of this one. The plan she formed was good. It would save Xi, put Lu Bu in a precarious position when he returned to Shu and inflate Cao Cao's ego so that he would be vulnerable to attack. Cao Cao was, as always, underestimating her. Soon he would learn exactly how well she did her job. As she lay in fetal position on the floor, calculating her next move, Zhen Ji came in and laughed. Cal wanted to crush the bitch's skull with her own flute, but her hands hurt so much. Then, to make matters worse, Ji began to play her damned flute and she tooted all the notes that would go in one ear and pound their way out the back of someone's skull. Cal groaned, Lu Bu was going to die for this. Suddenly she felt another presence and looked up. Who the hell was this?

"Enjoying your stay?" an unfamiliar man in purple robes asked.

She grumbled and stared at him through her less swollen eye.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am the true mastermind behind all of this, my name is Sima Yi."

"Never heard of you." Cal spit some blood at him and began to close her eyes.

"Even after all of that you still are ready to fight." Yi pulled her head off the floor with her hair. "So you're Cao's little obsessions are you?"

"Jealous?"

"You just don't know when to stop do you?" Yi opened his hand and let her head bang against the floor. "Play a little louder Ji, the acoustics in this room are terrible."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Pang Tong looked at Jiang Wei curiously. The annoying boy was giving him a pitiful death stare. "Are you undressing me with your eyes?"

Wei glared at him and clenched his spear. "That is disgusting you nasty midget."

"Wei, silence." Liang snapped. "My lord, shall we move towards Banzhou?"

Liu Bei looked at him with tired eyes. Why the hell couldn't he stay awake? "Yes. We shall meet Cao Cao on the battlefield. I wish that we had more generals with us…but we will make do."

"Yes…"Liang looked over at Tong who sat at the emperor's right hand. "Why did you take the liberty of making those decisions, Tong? I do not recall you being promoted to master strategist."

"I did what was necessary at the time. I still stand behind my decisions." Tong sat up straight.

"I agree with Tong's actions. I would have done the same had I not been so ill." Liu Bei took another sip of the wine like concoction Tong had made for him. It was sweet and syrupy, but potent and overwhelmingly almond.

"Of course my lord." Liang masked his true anger. Yet again the mighty Shu Lord had sided with the lesser officer.

"Sent…. Scouts." Wei Yan offered.

"Everyone is reequipped and ready to move out." Huang Zhong ate some Peking duck.

"I haven't had a drink in ten hours." Zhang Fei grumbled. "I'm ready to kill the entire Wei army myself."

"In my cousin's absence, I will be taking over command of the cavalry corps." Ma Dai smirked. He really wasn't sure he was ready for this.

"Then let's move out." Liu Bei thumped his fist on the table. "We must meet our comrades halfway and hope they are trying to do the same."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ma Chao plunged his Stallion Fury into the chest of a Wu corporal and lifted him off the ground. As soon as the cautious enemy major was close enough, Chao cracked his weapon down on the man's head along with the screaming corporal. "Justice will prevail!"

Guan Yu smiled, Ma Chao was a fierce fighter despite being incredibly corny with his love struck remarks. That seemed to be the way it was with everyone. Sun Shang Xiang was entirely smitten with her husband and couldn't keep her hands off him, but in battle she was a force to be reckoned with. Yue Ying was the same way. She spoke of Zhou Tai and got a dreamy look about her, but when her scythe was in her hands she was a hellion. Chao and Lu Bu were unbeatable on the battlefield, yet they were so easily led around by the women they loved. Then there was crazy little Cal who could cut a man's heart out of his chest without batting an eye, but melted instantly when Chao was near her. Suddenly, Yu began to miss his own wife. He looked back to the man in front of him and split him in half then backed up a step. The damned Wu army was surrounding them. "Hey, you want to try a double musou?"

"That would be a very good move now."

"Stick with me kid, I'll teach you some cool shit."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Get her on her little horse." Zhen Ji instructed the guards. "Where heading back to Hanzhong."

Cal looked at the swirling world around her out of her marginally swollen eye. The other was too swollen to open at all. The guards threw forced her up onto Ares back and the skittish Arab pranced around inadvertently causing his master more pain. She whimpered as she grabbed a hold of his mane and tried to keep herself in the saddle..

"Get your hands off of her you scum." Lu Bu chased them off and scooped his wife off her horse and onto his. He tried to place her in front of him but she cried out.

"Awww…." Suddenly she winced and groaned. _Damned fucking son of a bitch….._

Lu Bu cradled her in his arms instead, resting his weapon across his lap. "There. Is that better?"

"This is your fault. Damn you." No matter how nice he was going to try and be…..he was still going to try and create his own empire. She had to remember that…he was still the enemy. The only reason her husband even cared right now was because he still had a use for her, he knew she was going to be the one to get them out of this.

"Yeah…..I guess I should known." He looked down at her battered frame and felt incredibly guilty for what had happened. It was his fault, yet she suffered for his mistakes. He knew damned well she wouldn't be won over by his apologies and kindness. They had both begun to count the days when this horrible marital mistake would be over. This was an unforeseen setback but his ambitions were still very much alive. She would help get him out of this and save their son, but the time was approaching for one of them to die. It definitely would not be the mighty Lu Bu,

"Is Xi ok?"

"Yes." He began to walk Red Hare away from the curious ears of Cao Cao's elite guards. "What should I do?"

"We need to get Xi out, soon. He's crazy, I don't know how long he'll be safe."

"I'm sorry."

_You will be. _"I have a plan. We need to act quickly."

"Can you tell me?"

"Not now…..when we get to Hanzhong."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

_ ****_

Tong moved Fluffy in closer to Wei Yan, who always preferred to commute on foot than on horseback. "When did you send out those scouts?"

"Last…Night. Back…Tonight."

"Something's wrong. Chao should be back by now. All he was going to do was deliver the message."

"Got…Bad…Feeling…Too."

"At least Liu Bei is back to normal. Wish I could tell him his prime minister is a traitor…but I don't have proof."

"In…Time."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Well this is probably the last hurrah." Yu sighed and looked over at Chao who was also getting swamped.

"Well….let's at least go out with a blaze of lightning and screaming."

"Sounds like a fine epitaph." Yu smiled. "I bet you'll get a statute with a horse…me a temple."

"Why do you get a temple? Oh…yeah..you are the 'god of war' aren't you?"

"Yes. It's about time you show me some respect." Yu took a deep breath about ready to put every last drop of his being into his musou. But Chao stopped him.

"Hey…are we already dead?"

"Not yet....why?"

"Because I think I see Zhao Yun."

"That would be a hallucination brought on by battle fatigue. Stop wishing your friends to join us. You're going to be stuck with me for a while."

"No…" Chao severed a man's arm. "I think that's Zhao Yun."

"I, Zhao Yun, have come to vanquish the dishonorable!" Came the loud shout from the masses of Wu soldiers being plowed over by the hooves of Tsunami

"Chao, stop imposing you hallucinations on me." Yu looked over the tops of the Wu soldiers. Finally, he was happy he was outrageously tall. He clearly saw the figure of Zhao Yun coming towards them. "But incase this is real, I guess we should hang on a bit longer. It would be rude not to say hello."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sun Shang Xiang looked over the battlefield and hissed. "That worthless bitch of a brother is going to pay for this."

"Well Tai, now we have to make a decision." Zhou Yu turned to Tai who sat calmly upon Mariner.

"We helped her get here, Yu." Tai cocked an eyebrow. "That in itself is grounds for execution."

"Well going on the principle of 'We're already damned', we'll go make our case to our emperor after Shang's brigade has made him more receptive to our advice." Yu shrugged.

"Tai…" Ying whispered. "Be careful."

"I will." He kissed her hand. "Technically I'm protecting a member of the Sun family right now, so I'm not overstepping my orders. Zhou Yu is screwed though. He's as good as dead." He flashed Ying a grin.

Yu rolled his eyes. "And you think my music is irritating."

"READY!" Shang looked back to her men and watched the two Wu boys move to the side of the road. Ying waved to Tai and took her place beside her empress. "CHARGE!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Sorry this spot's taken." Chao flipped a man in the air and batted him into a group of fresh troops."

"I though you said he was going to get Shang and Ying." Yu punctured a man's lung and decided to push his spear through the poor bastard and into the guy behind him. With two men on his weapon he spun and cleaned out the area. The two unfortunate soldiers got thrown off at the end of the 360 degree spin.

"Well, I did bring them back." Yun smiled. "After today, Liu Bei is going to have to fight his wife for the army commander title." He lashed out at some archers and returned to his friends.

"Have either of you heard of a triple musou?" Yu asked slyly.

"A threesome huh?" Yun asked thoughtfully. "And Ying opted to go with Shang."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Cal…." Dun reached out for her as she passed through the gate.

"Oh you. Why are you bothering to talk to me? You've made it very clear to everyone in the three kingdoms that you want absolutely nothing to do with me." She had returned to Ares soon after Lu Bu swept her off his back. 'Collaborating' was looked down upon and Sima Yi asked her to join him for the ride. He was subtle yet conniving and he knew a shitload about Rome. She couldn't help but think he was going to be a hell of a lot more trouble than anyone thought.

"I just wanted to see how you were." Dun closed his eye. She looked horrible…how could Cao be so cruel? Especially to someone he knew he cared about.

"How am I? Well your favorite cousin is holding my son hostage, how do you think I am? Oh but you wouldn't be able to relate to that would you? Tell me Dun, have you even told your son the truth yet?"

"Mao knows he's adopted, Yuan told him that." Dun looked away; she was one of the few people who knew about Mao. When he was a young soldier in the Han army, he had met a woman. While the army was in town they had a good time, but when the unit moved out he made promises to return that he never kept. Little did he know she got pregnant and waited for him….for years. Eventually he made it back to the town on another tour of duty, but didn't bother to go check up on his old lover. Her father found him and presented him with a three year old child, Mao. The old man explained that she killed herself when he never came for her; she shamed her family and needed to rectify that. So they took in the child, what else were they going to do? However they knew the culprit's name, and that was Xiahou Dun. He had been young and carefree and the last thing he needed was a kid. Yuan was with him then and suggested that he and his wife take in the boy. Lady Xin loved children and she and Yuan were popping out kids like a factory, so Dun agreed.

"Does he know that you're not his uncle? No? So I guess we have nothing in common."

"Why not? I cared enough for him to place him in a family that would raise him and leave him to want for nothing. At least he's Yuan's adopted son and not my bastard son."

"He at least deserves to know you're his father." She shook her head. "How you can you be so faithful to your cousin yet ignore your own child is beyond me. We have nothing to talk about."

"Cal…"

"Dun….I don't have anything else to say." She trotted away from him and into the stronghold. Into the blue sea of Wei soldiers and angry officers.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Shang galloped at the head of her small brigade and couldn't wipe the smile off her face. She knew Quan thought himself a genius for attacking the enemy rear as they retreated, it was just his way. Now she was attacking his rear, with his own men, and going to take them completely by surprise. The one other perk, was that Sun Quan, the family wus, would be leading from behind. Shang's grin broadened. She was going to teach him a lesson today, one that their father had taught them ages ago, a Sun always leads the charge

The first clump of men that Shang hit were none other than Sun Quan's elite bodyguards. The fell like dominos under the surprise assault and Shang leapt off her horse to attack Quan as soon as she saw him. Ying took over the attack and pushed the men down the hill and towards the three lone Shu officers outside the gate of Jiangling.

Shang easily beat Sun Quan in a match that lasted only two minutes. A few of his bodyguards had not been killed by the initial attack and she was forced to

do away with them, before subduing her brother. "Give up?" She asked with her chakrams at his throat.

"What are you doing! How can you attack your kingdom, your family?" Quan choked as she inched closer.

"Shu is my kingdom and as I recall, you were attacking us. So Quan, why are you attacking _your_ family?"

"Liu Bei was going to attack us eventually; I was just taking the chance while you were safe at home. I didn't want to attack you."  
"Well I'm putting myself in the middle of this fight Quan. And if that's the best excuse you can come up with….."

"I told him to." Lu Meng rode up. "I suggested we try and recruit Guan Yu…..that Jingzhou was too important to leave in Shu hands."

"He's the emperor Meng. If he can't make the right decision then he shouldn't be emperor." Shang growled and kicked him off her blades. "I wish Ce and Daddy were here to see what a horrible failure you are. They would be so ashamed of what you are doing to us and your country…..I'm ashamed to say you're my brother."

"Zhou Yu! Zhou Tai! Help me! Stop her!" Quan yelped as he saw his two lost officers return.

"Sir, we helped her get here." Tai dismounted.

"You have made a grave error. You have put both of our kingdoms in jeopardy." Yu brushed off his robes and moved forward. "Cao Cao is probably in Hanzhong, waiting to destroy Shu. Then he will turn his army to the east. We need our alliance with Liu Bei now, more than ever."

"But!" Quan looked at Yu as Tai helped him off the ground. "You…you were a part of this?"

"Yes." Tai answered. "By helping Sun Shang Xiang, I hoped to help patch our broken relationship with Shu. Zhou Yu is correct, we are in danger. Wei grows more powerful as we make each other more weak."

"Stop the assault and let us return home." Shang shook her chakram at him. "Or you'll be known as the short lived king of Wu."

"What's done is done!" Quan snapped. "I achieve nothing by backing off now."

"You have the chance to make things right with Liu Bei." Zhou Yu sighed. "Before it is too late for all of us."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"What's going on?" Yu asked.

"What do you mean?" Chao responded.

"Well, it kind of looks like they're stopping their attack." Yu waved at the Wu officers running back and forth trying to gather their men.

"Shang must have been successful!" Ying grinned. She was worried when the small unit broke through the lines and joined the boys. She felt like she had abandoned Shang behind enemy lines, even though Tai and Yu would have never let any harm come to her.

"We'll pull back and regroup then" Yun watched for any sign of Shang. "She'll be coming if that's what happened."

"You mean like that?" Chao smiled as Shang materialized out of the Wu army.

"So?" Yu asked and his queen approached.

"My bargaining skills are unparalleled." Shang grinned. "Quick, form up and march west before they get any ideas."

"How the hell did you pull that off?" Chao asked.

"Well I think Zhou Yu may have sacrificed his job for us, but he's not stupid. He knows he's going to get a better job when we take over Wu." Shang smiled.

"I don't remember discussing that, your majesty." Ying huffed.

"Well start thinking on it, because that is what is going to have to happen for us to be one country again."

"One thing at a time." Yu snapped. "We have to get back home."

"Wait!" Yun said. "We have to go to Banzhou….that's where they'll be heading." Yun suddenly remembered the horrible things that awaited them back home.

"Why?" Chao asked, slightly worried. Banzhou was where Cal went…

"Chao…" Yun gulped. "Diao Chan was working for Wei….we think…"

"No." Chao snapped. "Don't you dare tell me that bastard has her! He's already taken away my family….he's not getting my new one."

"Cao Cao is probably moving in to attack Cheng Du." Ying explained to Yu.

"And we now have five generals here…instead of with Liu Bei and the army." Yu summed up the situation.

"Yes." Shang sighed.

"Then we go to Banzhou and we kill Cao Cao." Chao yelled. "He has evaded my spear for too long!"

"You got one thing right. All of you are getting back on that damned boat and heading up the river to Banzhou. Go. We can handle these men. We'll march to Yiling and find transportation there."

"We'll send boats for you." Shang nodded. "We have to get back to Liu Bei."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"So this in Banzhou?" Tong asked

"Looks empty." Zhong said.

"It is." Dai rode up. "Was when I got here."

"So Cao Cao is where?" Liu Bei asked as he rode up. "Maniacal bovine asshole."

"Hanzhong." Dai answered slowly and stared at his emperor.

"Son of a bitch. I like Hanzhong." Bei huffed.

Dai gave a confused look to Tong. Tong whispered. "The medicine I'm giving him has some….side effects."

"So he's going to curse a lot?" Zhong asked

"Damn right I am." Bei growled. "This is a goddamned outrage. Fucking Wei bastards."

"I'll ride with him" Zhong smiled.

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"Alright, are you ready to leave?" Cal asked quickly.

"I can't believe you…" He touched her face and brushed her cheek with his thumb.

"It's fine, I've been worse. This time it's for a good reason. Look, Xi's waiting outside the western gate with Hare. I occupied him with a meat bun and Hare with a salt lick. Now we just have to get you out of this castle. So hit me."

"What?"

"You heard me, hit me. And make sure you get blood."

"Why?"

"We're going to fight now, because of my indecent acts with the emperor. You, as an esteemed general, aren't going to tolerate that behavior from your wife-no matter what reason. So call me a whore, slap me around and storm out of the castle. Everyone knows about your temper and won't get in your way. Easy escape. So hit me." Cal smiled.

"You're not going to take a shot at my balls again are you?" Lu Bu grinned; he was finally able to see the grand plan.

"No. But you should be happy, your marriage scam worked. I'm doing what you wanted me to do, bale your ass out of tight situations."_ And into new ones_

"You figured me out, and it took how long?" He kissed her.

"Hey, I'm not a strategist. So are we going to fight or what?" She hated him for suddenly deciding she wasn't worthless. Bastard, and how many times had Chan done this to him? How many more would there be?

"Where are we going to meet you?" He smiled and kissed her again. He couldn't help it….she was genuinely growing on him.

"I need to distract Cao Cao awhile. Get going or else someone's bound to find Xi and we're all goners. Get back to Lui Bei." _And stop kissing me._

"Alright." He raised his hand. "You sure about this?"

"Hit me you fucking pussy." (SMACK!)

"You ok?" he whispered.

"Oh please! Don't hit me again." She screamed and winked.

"You worthless whore!" he smiled.

"I did it for your son! How dare you!"

"I'm ashamed to have such a whore for a wife."

"You're lucky you could even get a whore for a wife!" then she lowered her voice. "Now throw me through the door."

"Worthless scum!" He picked her up and tossed her through the door, then stormed out of the castle with Sky Scorcher smiling.

Cal looked up to see Lu Bu on his way to freedom. She looked around, _cry dammit, _she shed a tear and caught the eye of Xiahou Dun and his newly accepted son, Mao. She leapt up and pushed past them sobbing. It was time to ensnare Cao Cao.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Thank god for those winds." Shang looked over at Ying. "When did you learn that trick?"

Ying smiled. The little bit of magic she picked up was Kongming's ChiBi wind calling trick. Thank god indeed. The small ship made it upriver in record time and now they were only a twenty five mile ride from Banzhou. In one hour they would be back with the army. "Well I started learning that one before we joined Shu. Good thing or else I may have never been able to complete it. Liang finished teaching me that the night before I met Tai. " She laughed.

"Good timing." Yun patted her back. "Let's go."

Chao rode up pissed off that he was stuck with Hawk and not Lotus. "Lets go! Are you planning on talking all damned day?"

"Why don't you go ahead, you'll need the head start?" Yun grinned as Chao growled and galloped off. "Shall we?"

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"My lord?" she squeaked as she tapped on Cao Cao's study door.

"Come in." He looked up annoyed only to furrow his eyebrows in confusion. "What happened to you?"

"My husband…." She put her head down knowing he would get the point. "Didn't approve of my involvement with you."

"Oh."

"I've come to ask a favor, my lord."

"You know very well what favors cost." Cao Cao watched her, his suspicion faded as soon as her angry tear-streamed face looked up at him.

"After I go for Ma Chao's life, I want you to make sure Lu Bu doesn't have a chance to corrupt my son. His stupidity is unforgivable." She made her way over to his desk and sat on his lap. "I want him dead."

"Hmmmm….very well then." He waited for her move.

"Let me ensure you remember your promise." She caressed his face and kissed his goatee before kissing him in a way she knew he never expected from her.

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"XUANDE!!!!!!" Shang leapt off Mystique and onto her startled husband. She knocked him to the ground and kissed him mercilessly.

"Oh Shang….I'm so glad you're home."

"I'm glad that medicine wore off two hours ago." Tong mumbled to Dai.

"I'm glad my stupid cousin is home." Dai shook his head. "I never want to be a lieutenant general again. The damned Major generals are a pain in the ass."

"Where is she!" Chao snapped and looked around. He focused on Tong's weary face. "DAMMIT TELL ME!"

"He has her….." Tong let his shoulders fall.

"Then I will kill him!" Chao tried to gallop past the small group of officers but Yun swatted him out of the saddle with his spear.

"Chao….you can't. We all want to…but we can't."

Liu Bei sat up with his wife clinging to his neck. He coughed until she let go and wrapped her arms around his chest instead. "Chao. We're going to do whatever we can. Yun is right. Charging out across an open field to attack the army by yourself is not going to help."

"Stay." Wei Yan slammed Chao back down to a sitting position when the tiger general tried to stand up.

"It's Cal…..she's a professional. She'll figure out something." Yun tried to sound convincing.

"What exactly happened to all of you?" Tong asked trying to change the subject.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Tell me how will you kill Ma Chao?" Cao looked up at the woman on top of him and groaned, she knew what a man needed.

"It won't be hard to get near him, not if tell him I'm out for your head." Cal watched him lean back enjoying her movements, how easy it was to get him off.

"Really, and you'll still be able to kill him even though you were his lover?"

"I love my son more; I can always find another man to fuck." She pushed herself into his pelvis, forcing him deeper into her. His face contorted in happiness. He was close, but not quite there. _Yes, you fool, I'm going to kill the only man I have ever loved. Right. You have no idea who you're dealing with._

"I want you to kill his while you're riding him. The great horse soldier falling to a woman on top of him is fitting." He smiled, knowing how the man would feel in his last moments on earth.

"Lu Bu has escaped, Lu Bu has escaped!" A shout came from the hall.

As the shout came from the hallway, Cal smiled. She watched Cao Cao's face as she continued to thrust her hips into him. "That is a shame isn't it?

I'd be willing to bet Red Hare has already cleared the pass and he is well on his way back to the Shu camp with Lu Xi. Pity he's such an incredibly fast horse, isn't it?" She continued with the mindless sexual act.

"I see you have come to terms with your death then." Cao Cao watched her breasts giggle. Without interrupting her he sat up and stared her in the eye.

"Of course." She leaned forward and kissed him biting his lip as she withdrew from the kiss. Licking the drop of blood of his lip she said icily, "Again I

must express my disappointment. To no longer be your whore? How will I ever make it past that?"

"I shall order your execution to take place on the front lines, so that all of Shu can watch you die."

"You know how to treat a girl right Cao." She felt him ready to climax then she stood up and walked over to the side of the room where her clothes lay. "Finish yourself off. I no longer need to humor you."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Red Hare flew into the Shu camp and came to a sudden halt. Lu Bu looked around him. Huang Zhong's archer unit was twelve deep in front of him, waiting for the word. "Where is Liu Bei?"

"I don't think you're in the position to ask any questions right now." Zhong shrugged and aimed his bow.

"I am right here." Liu Bei pushed through the crowd of soldiers beginning to surround the huge warrior and his fire red stallion. "Hand over Xi. No one wants him to get hurt."

Lu Bu nodded and handed the child down to the emperor. "I did not abandon her. She helped me get him out."

"Why should I do anything but order your execution?" Bei asked as he shouldered the child.

"See." Jiang Wei leaned down to whisper in Liu Chan's ear. "I told you he cares for that Lu Xi too much. He aims to replace you."

"I believe you Master Wei." Chan said and ran off to cry to himself in Master Zhuge's robes.

"Because I have been in the Wei camp.. You need accurate information about the enemy force." Lu Bu replied.

"That buys you only a bit of time." Bei shook his head. "Huang Zhong, Zhang Fei! Take Lu Bu to his new private prison."

Zhao Yun watched as Lu Bu was disarmed and escorted to the fortress barricades. He looked down at the infuriated Ma Chao then over at Wei Yan. It had taken both of them to tackle Chao and force him to the ground. Then without any other options available to restrain him, they opted to lay on him. Fortunately Yue Ying was too occupied with thinking to realize what she could be ogling. "Shall we let him up?"

"Safe…now." Yan agreed and rolled off him.

Yun cautiously stood and dusted himself off. "You have got to get that anger under control."

"He will die too." Chao slammed his fist into the ground. "This is all his fault."

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"Hey kid." Ren opened the cell door and walked in. "I come bearing your last meal. I know how much you like Sesame chicken."

"Mmmmm." She reached up for the platter. "Thanks."

Ren sat down and sighed, "I'd like to say Dun's coming, but you know how he is."

"Head shoved up his cousin's ass?" She smiled. "Don't worry, I know how he is."

"I was always so hard on you because Cao's just so intolerant. I didn't want this to happen. He can be so ruthless."

"Really, it's ok. I knew what I was doing." Cal smiled and offered him some chicken which he gratefully took.

"Well…I suppose there are other people you'd like to have visit you…"

"Ren." She kissed his scruffy cheek. "I'm glad you came. I don't want any of those other bastards in here."

"This is touching." Sima Yi swooshed up. "If you don't mind, General Cao, I would like a few words with the condemned."

"You are a talkative one aren't you?" Cal asked as she sat back against the cell wall.

Sima Yi watched Ren disappear then entered the cell. "And you are very good at what you do."

He fanned himself and watched her with those deep black eyes. Cal held his stare. "Very. But I do believe that is why I am finally being granted my execution. Lord Cao hates being shown up."

"Indeed." Yi sat down and spread out his robes. "I expected him to underestimate you. However I must admit I did the same. I'd like you to work for me."

"What?" she was genuinely surprised by the offer.

"I'm tired of these ridiculous games our lord plays with everyone. He wants women and officers and land and then he decides to toy with everything first. You should have been dead ages ago, but he wanted to play first. I believe he had outlasted his use and it is time for a new emperor of Wei. Join me. Diao Chan was working for me, still is. You're a lot better than she is though. Had me fooled."

"I'm actually looking forward to tomorrow. No more bullshit."

"You do not fool me. I know about Ma Chao…I know you thought you changed for him. Chan is very thorough. You do not want to die, not that you have happiness in your grasps."

"You just know so much don't you?" Cal shook her head. "You know so much about Rome and me and Shu and Wei…..well then oh omnipotent Sima Yi. Tell me, why would I bother to help you?"

"Because I will win in the end. And your assistance will mean rewards….lives will be spared."

"Hmmm….too bad I, like my comrades, believe that some things are just worth dying for. Good night, you are interrupting my meal."

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"This looks like a fine place for an execution." Cao Cao sat on Shadowless and looked around. "Right over there."

"Oh fantastic! If you get the right angle on the cut, my head will roll downhill. Now that is a way to die." She was calm and relaxed. For some reason everything was going to work out fine even though she would loose her life today. Her son was safe, that was all that mattered. He would be fine now; he still had the men of Shu. Everyone would soon be out of the grasp of Cao Cao. But it was more then just that, somehow she had managed to luck out and get an honorable death. All this time she thought she's go out in a ball of fire, from some explosions she had to set to someone's villa. Or die fighting, taking everyone she could with her. But this, this option was nice.

"But who will be the lucky one to carry out my orders?" Cao Cao looked behind him and surveyed his generals

"Such a shame Dian Wei isn't here. I'll pass on your apologies when I see him in hell." She slid off her horse and scratched his ear. "Thanks for everything Ares. You're one of the finest warhorses to grace the battlefield." With that she walked to the designated place of her death and knelt down. The view was spectacular; she could see the entire Shu army from here. "Ren, can you see that my son gets my horse?"

"Yeah kid, I can do that."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Yun closed his eyes, they were back to sitting on Ma Chao again. Wei Yan grunted as Chao tried to flail and force then off. "Chao…Ying will come up with something.

"They're going to kill her!!!!"

"Kill….You…too."

"I can't just watch!!" Chao began to cry. "I'm going to loose her."

Yun wiped away a tear of his own. "We can't do anything…."

"Wait. Ying….smart."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"You left her there! You coward!" Sun Shang Xiang threw one of her chakrams at Lu Bu who blocked the flying saucer.

"She was supposed to escape, how was I to know it was a suicide mission?" Lu Bu looked over at his son who sat in the corner playing with Liu Bei.

"You didn't ask for details?" Shang screamed and slashed at him with her remaining weapon.

"Sunny please." Lui Bei stepped forward and tried to restrain her before Lu Bu split his wife in half with his hands.

"The time was right, so I took the opportunity that presented itself. I didn't think…." He looked up towards the hill.

"There's a surprise. However, this isn't over yet." Yue Ying stepped forward. "We can stop this."

"How?" Lui Bei looked to the pretty young strategist.

"We execute Lu Bu before they have a chance to detach her head." Ying smiled but turned to Lu Bu. She had to think of Lu Xi….. "or at least someone that resembles him."

"Yes, I suppose it's worth a try. We don't have any other options." Lui Bei nodded. They could always chop off his head for real later. "Yun, see what Wei prisoners we have that will fill Lu Bu's shoes." Bei walked out of the room carrying Lu Xi.

Zhuge Liang smiled and fanned himself, "My dear wife, I have taught you well." _Everything is falling into place_.

"Yes." Ying looked out the window. She was counting on Cal falling back into he old self. Once 'Lu Bu' was dead, Cao CAo would think he had a very pissed off revenge seeking assassin on his hands. In reality, he would. Cal would react poorly to the thought of her son's father being beheaded for treason, Ying just hoped she expressed herself well.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Xiahou Dun, would you do the honors?" Cao Cao watched his cousin's face.

"If you ask me to, my lord." Dun stepped forward and stood next to his cousin.

"Considering she is the one who denied you Lu Bu's head, well it is only fitting."

"Of course."

"Dun," Cao Cao looked down at him and quietly said, "Trust me. It may be painful now, but in order for you to move past her betrayal you must do this. It is for your own good."

"I do not trust anyone more, cousin." He stepped forward and drew his scimitar. With a heavy sigh he asked, "Do you have any last words, Quirinus Calpurnia?" He felt the hilt of his weapon slide a bit in his hand, soaked from his own sweat. He couldn't save her….or could he? This was the only was he could stop his cousin from hurting her anymore. There were no other options. He blinked back a tear.

She looked over her shoulder at the one eyed man. "I'm sorry Dun, I'm sorry fate has played us against one another. I never wanted to shame you, but I couldn't avoid it. I am glad this task falls to you. I am honored to fall to such a great warrior as Xiahou Dun." She turned back to look at the Shu army. "Long live Lord Lui Bei!"

Dun raised his weapon to strike, he felt his hand shake a bit, but Cao Cao's curious words stopped his blade in midair.

"It would appear that we are not the only ones with this idea." Cao watched a shackled Lu Bu being marched to the front lines by Zhang Fei followed by Lui Bei and Zhuge Liang. Fei threw his captive to the ground and Lu Bu sat up. They began to argue and Fei kicked him in the back of the head.

Dun put his weapon down and watched as events unfolded below. _What the hell is going on?_

Cal looked up and cocked her head for a better view. Fei looked to Zhuge Liang and the prissy strategist made a slashing motion with his fan. Lui Bei yelled something, a moment past, then it rang through the hills. "Death is too good for Lu Bu, traitor and spy. Brother, rid the earth of this vermin!" Then Fei raised his Viper Blade..

AN: These cliffhangers are adictive. ;-) Sorry, I'm evil First I torture my OC then I torture my faithful readers. Thank you all for such awesome reviews. I'll post CH 33 tomorrow, it needs some fine tuning. Time to start killing off people...... 


	33. Infernium

Chapter 33

Infernium

"NOOOOO!!!!!" The scream rang across the battlefield as clear as a bell. Lu Bu stood up and looked out the window. He was wearing nothing but a muslin shirt that he had to leave unbuttoned since it did not fit his chest and a spare pair of Zhang Fei's pants. Barefoot he stood staring out across the battlefield at his now hysterical wife. After Fei's blade fell, she leapt up and tried to senselessly come to his rescue. Dun had grabbed her to stop her from falling off the cliff and was restraining the flailing screaming woman now as she fought to break free. Lu Bu turned to Yue Ying who was standing beside him watching the same thing. "Did she...really love me?"

"Yes." She instantly responded. She caught Shang's look and put her finger to her lips. Leave it to Lu Bu to think it was all for him. How quickly he forgot about Xi...

Lu Bu looked back to the hill where Cal had finally crumbled to the ground, tackled by her friend. Xiahou Dun knelt beside her, comforting her as best he could. How quickly he had turned from executioner back to friend. Together they sat as Cao Cao watched Wei Yan drag the headless corpse back into the stronghold. Fei pushed his spear into the bleeding neck and lifted the head on high for both armies to see. Having seen enough, Cao Cao turned away and waved for Dun to do the same. Gently the cycloptic warrior lifted the woman off the ground and walked her off the hill. "We have to get her back."

"Now you say that you bastard." Shang spat as she bounced Lu Xi in her arms "Now that she's made ever sacrifice she possibly can for you do you suddenly feel guilty. You took her as your wife and you never once lifted a finger to do anything for her. Not once. She's defended you, given you a beautiful child and was ready to give her life so that you both could live. Even after you abandoned her to run off with that backstabbing bitch! You should have died at Xia Pi."

"Shang..." Yue Ying cautioned. Helping Lu Bu with his delusions was one thing, but trying his patience was another.

"No, he should hear this. Someone needs to tell him how despicable he is." She picked up Lu Xi and hefted him onto her shoulder. "You shouldn't even be allowed to raise your son, you are a disease."

"I'm going to get her back" Lu Bu turned back to the window.

"You won't have to; she'll be coming to us." Ying sat down as Liang and Bei came into the room.

"A magnificent plan, Ying. Truly inspired." Liang fanned himself excitedly. "It worked perfectly."

Bei noticed his fuming wife, who looked as if she was thinking about abducting the small child in her arms. "Sunny, why are you so angry?"

"I'm sick of having to be in the presence of this filth known as Lu Bu."

"Maybe I should have asked you to behead that Captain." He lifted Lu Xi out her arms to prevent her from running off with him. The boy laughed and hugged him.

"WEEEEE!" Xi shoved his finger in his nose

"Here, how bout this?" He let the boy crawl up and onto his back so he could perch on the emperor's shoulders.

"So you think she will come to us?" Lu Bu asked hopefully.

"Of course, she will want revenge. Give her a few hours and her sorrow will make her fall back on her training. She will come to us, as Cao Cao's assassin."

"I am very proud of you Ying! And to think of something so quickly!" Liang complimented again. _I AM the best teacher in the world._

"I'm glad you think so, my husband, because it is your life she will be coming to take." Ying hoped Cal would follow though with her distraught emotions.

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Chao looked over at Yun, "Did she.."

"No! Hey that was for Xi not him. Chao she's trying to give her boy a good life."

"Why is this going to work? I mean, won't he just kill her later?"

"He doesn't know she's changed." Yun ran his hands through his hair. "You didn't know her before. She can put herself into this weird trance...Like when the fought last time. I hope only she can do it."

"What do you mean?" Chao looked at him.

"What if Sima Yi...."

"TONG!" The two men shouted.

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"Just execute her, my lord." Sima Yi huffed, he was getting nowhere with his argument.

"I have underestimated her, but I do believe she will be coming back around to Wei." Cao smiled.

"And this has plan has worked out for you when?"

"Easy Sima Yi, have a bit of faith. She's a bloodthirsty killer; it's all she's ever wanted to do."

"Sir...."

"You saw her, hysterical. She loves that boy of hers..." Cao Cao smirked. "And I know her well enough to know she wants revenge."

"Oh?" Sima Yi sat down and closed his eyes. The man was deteriorating fast; his sanity was teetering on the brink of oblivion.

"She will go for Zhuge Liang's head, and I will let her."

"What?" Yi's head picked up. "You can't be serious? Let her loose?"

"Yes. But I think you might have some methods of ensuring her task is completed." Cao smiled at the young man who was suddenly interested in his captive. "So you still want me to execute her?"

"I have negotiating skills, yes." Sima Yi fanned himself thoughtfully. He looked to Cao Cao. Perhaps toying with your victims wasn't so bad......

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"Only she can do it." Tong shook his head.

"You tested it?" Chao was worried.

"It would be too dangerous to allow it any other way. She's an independent; they'd be wasting their time if they had done anything else to her." Tong shook his head.

"Who exactly is this 'they'?" Chao asked.

"Those Romans." Tong waved at him. "Look, if she could be controlled then they would have never set her up to die."

"But does Sima Yi have the power to do something about it?" Yun asked.

"Dunno. I think she's strong enough to resist anything he tries. I don't know much about this guy." Tong shrugged.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Quite a day, hmmmm?" Cao Cao walked into Dun's tent where his cousin was comforting Cal.

"What do you want?" She snapped. Why the hell was she still alive? All she knew now was that Xi was a traitor's son. He was doomed to a life of misery like hers all because Zhuge Liang despised her. He found his opportunity to destroy her boy, and he jumped on it. She was happy that Lu Bu was dead, but not at this price.

Cao sat down next to her and pet her hair. "You look terrible."

"Sorry, I forgot the mighty emperor likes us all to put on a show." She felt Dun's arm squeeze her, a caution.

"You must be furious with them for taking the away any hope for your son." Cao wiped her tears away with his index finger.

His touch sickened her but the odd statement make her think. Did they really think she was going to do something for them? How stupid were they? It would explain her continuing existence but honesty this was all a bit far fetched. She leaned her head into Dun's chest some more. Cao Cao took it as a sign of her agreement.

"I know what happens when your anger envelops you." He ran his hand over her bicep. "Like when you fought Zhou Yu. The time has come for the end of Shu. Zhou Yu enticed both Lady Sun back home with her family and Lady Huang back to Jian Ye with the promise of love. Sun Quan used this in his favor and attacked Guan Yu's army at Jingzhou. Shu barely escaped that tragedy. What will happen when my army attacks tomorrow? You think a disorganized group of peasants and angry fools will be able to withstand our onslaught?"

Cal was glad her head was in Dun's tunic; otherwise her disbelieving stare would have given her away. How the hell would he know about that? Unless...he had a spy in Wu. He was right, Shu wasn't prepared to be hit with the force of the army he had.

"But you have more selfish concerns now don't you?" He rubbed her thigh.

Dun watched his cousin try and use her again. As if he hadn't hurt her enough. "Mengde, leave her be."

"I'm just letting her know what the situation is, incase she was wondering." Cao got up and left.

"He's sparing you, hoping you'll help us." Dun picked her chin up. "Please, take this chance. He'll pardon you if you do what he asks."

"I've already done what he asked." She sobbed. All that abuse, so that Xi would be worse off. Chao would help him, and only destroy his own reputation by doing it. How could she curse the people she loved so much! Zhuge Liang would pay for his scheming. He would die so that Shu would be better off. How dare he do that to her son.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I missed you." Shang wrapped her arms around her husband's neck. Slowly she began to kiss her way from his ear to his shoulder.

Bei sat down on the bed and pulled her down on top of him. "Sunny, I love you."

"I love you too." Shang smiled brightly and kissed him. "I was thinking.....I think I'm ready to start a family."

Bei looked her face over. Was this really happening? "Are you serious?"

"I know you've been bringing it up a lot...Xuande I want to have your children." She smiled and rubbed his face.

"Now?"

"Well....after this whole Wu shit is settled. I need to take care of family business first. But afterwards..."

"Sunny, you are the greatest thing to ever happen to me."

Shang let a wicked look cross her face. "Really? Well, I have a surprise for you....something Da told me when I was back home. Not that I really wanted to think of her and Ce....but well, a good idea is a good idea." She began kissing his chest and ran her hand into his pants. "Want to give it a shot?"

"I'd kind of like to know what you want me to do first....I haven't been well recently. I don't know if I'm up to your acrobatics."

"You don't have to do a thing." She licked his lips.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Dun?" Cal asked quietly as they ate some chicken with broccoli.

"Mmm?" He looked up, mouth full.

"I'm sorry about what I said before...about Mao. I know that's always bothered you, it was a cheap shot."

"Hey, you made me do the right thing. Don't apologize for that." He poked at a piece of broccoli. "I forgot how nice this used to be."

"Me too." She smiled. All these years it was just easier to think they had gone their separate ways and the friendship was over with as well. Must have eased the guilt a bit. "I'm sorry about Yuan."

"I got your note." He cleared his throat. "It meant a lot. You were the only one who really said anything."

"I figured that was the case. You have a very frigid family." She looked up as Ren came in with his plate.

"Got room for me?"

"You do take up a lot of room...." Dun mumbled.

"See what I've had to put up with?" Ren sat down on the cot next to Cal. "How you holding up?"

"Alright." She played with her food.

"You've barely touched your food, that's not like you." Ren observed.

"I'm worried about Xi." She finally admitted.

"No shit." Dun drank some wine.

"Well you can always take the Xiahou family approach to child-rearing. Ask someone to adopt him, then come back after all the work is done and claim him as your own." Ren smiled his warm and fuzzy smile at his cousin, the only way he'd get away with the comment without a concussion.

"But Xi is Lu Bu's son." Cal cleared her plate off onto Ren's. "I don't think Liu Bei adopting him would even help that."

"Well there's the problem." Dun scoffed. "You need a real emperor to do it."

"I'm not coming back to Wei, Dun." Cal knew he would keep trying. He honestly thought if she would swear allegiance to Cao Cao again that her life would be spared.

"Dun, come on." Ren tossed a few pieces of chicken back on to Cal's plate to coax her to eat something. "Respect her loyalties. She's got the same sense of duty that you and I have, just with the wrong alignment."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ma Chao fought the urge to reach for the bottle of wine that Dai had in his hand. "So what do you want me to do?"

"We have to try and stop her before she gets in the fortress. She can't kill Liang, not yet." Tong rolled his staff on the table.

"Go out tonight and wait for her." Ying suggested. "She loves you. She'll want to see you one last time."

"Don't say it that way!" Chao slammed his fist on the table.

"No. You need to realize what it is she's thinking. In her mind this is her one last kill before it's over. She's coming for Liang and then that's it."

"What if you're wrong? What if she doesn't want to talk to me?"

"She will." Yun smacked Chao's back. "Trust me."

"You have to remember to tell her Lu Bu's not dead and that he thinks she loves him." Tong poked Chao in the chest with the Tornado Staff. "So cut your make out session short and let her in on the current events."

"What if....."

"Stop. It will work out fine." Yun squeezed Chao's shoulder. "If not we'll blame it on Lu Bu and kill him again."

"I get to kill him this time."

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Cao Cao stroked his goatee as his officers discussed the demise of Lu Bu. He was amused; he did not think Lui Bei to be able to make such a difficult decision so quickly. Suddenly, Shu was making very beneficial mistakes. He looked up as Lu Bu's widow entered the room. Everyone went quiet, as she bowed to him. "Please, join us."

She entered then room cold and stoic, but suddenly strikingly beautiful. Having lost her husband only six hours ago, she was alarmingly composed and deadly. As she strode past the officers at the table, many of them felt chills run up their spine. "My Lord, may I ask of you a favor."

Cao felt the hairs on the back of his neck raise. He had never seen this side of her, a black and merciless side that would have rivaled Dian Wei's heartlessness. "Of course."

"I must have vengeance. Zhuge Liang will die for the lies and deception that have condemned my son to a life of poverty and humiliation. I beg of you Lord Cao Cao, to allow me this honor." She said emotionlessly.

Dun rubbed his eye and blinked. This couldn't be happening. He had left her an hour ago, she had fallen asleep in his arms and he quietly left to join his comrades. Yet here she was, in front of them all, begging for blood. "You need some time, Cal; this has been a very stressful day. Perhaps you should wait."

"I was ready to die this morning. The circumstances may have changed, but I still am ready to look upon the gates of hell. I will go to their camp and I will peel his skin off before I gut him." She put her hands behind her back. _You want a killer, Cao Cao, here I am._ "If our lord will be so kind as to grant me this request."

"If you burn the stronghold afterwards to pay them back for the loss at Wan Castle." Sima Yi watched her callous eyes turn to him. She would deliver a very devastating blow to Shu if he angled her in the correct direction. He didn't trust her. He knew she was playing them, but Cao Cao was convinced it was worth a try.

"If that is what you wish."

"Then you may go." Cao Cao nodded.

"At least take a weapon." Ren suggested.

"I have the tools I require." She strode out quickly, her boots echoing sharply as she left.

"You're right my lord, this is so much better then an execution." Sima Yi smiled thoughtfully then got up. He had to ensure she was going to be carrying out her orders.

"Kill both Zhuge Liang and burn everything. Quite a task." Cao Cao looked to Dun, "You did well cousin."

Dun gave Ren a sad look. They both knew it was going to be a horrible outcome for their friend.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"If these are their forces..." Liu Bei looked over the map and numbers again. "Then we are in for a desperate fight."

"He is too strong." Zhuge Liang played with the feathers of his fan. He had a chance now to finish this ploy of his. Lu Bu was still locked up and his psychotic wife was coming tonight. If he could snag Lu Bu as a bodyguard tonight, he could have the emperor dead by morning. Once Cal returned the idiot would be back to bargaining with her. He could send Lu Bu and his daunting wife to take care of Liu Bei. Lu Bu would eliminate the emperor and his protector, then be killed himself for the crime. Easy enough to do. He'd drug Liu Bei one last time....actually leaving that to Liu Chan might be a better....

"Kongming?" Liu Bei asked. "You were saying?"

"Sorry." Liang looked back up at Liu Bei, hopefully for the last time. "I was just thinking about releasing Lu Bu for the night. If we post him in my room, it would be a bit more helpful in stopping Cal. Since he is of the opinion that she loves him, it should be easy to keep him quiet."

"That's a good idea." Bei nodded.

"But back to the battle." He leaned forward. "I am actually going to suggest we find better ground. We can attack tomorrow, stun them a bit. Ying has created some juggernauts I'd like to use. That will give us the advantage. However once we are finished we need to move towards Sun Quan. I think here, at Yi Ling, is where we should try and patch our differences. I have a scout ready to deliver a message to Guan Yu to hold his position there."

"What good will that do?" Bei queried. "I believe Shang just bought us time. I doubt that Sun Quan is willing to talk.....I doubt I am either."

"Then Guan Yu will begin fortifying the city there and preparing for a battle to take him out. We cannot fight on two fronts and we cannot let them ally with Wei. This Wu problem must be dealt with immediately."

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"One more thing." Sima Yi swiftly caught up with her.

"What?" She growled and stared at his evil dark eyes.

"We're not done yet." Yi fanned himself and grinned. "Liao, if you please."

Cal turned to see Zhang Liao come out of a room with an angry look. "We meet again."

"And?"

Liao grabbed her and pulled her into his chest and wrapped his hand around her jaw. "This is to avenge my friend."

"What?" Cal looked to Sima Yi who was toying with a vial.

"You see, I don't exactly trust you. So we're going to adding a bit of insurance." He tapped her lips with his finger. "Open up."

Cal glared at him; she knew very well what he intended to do. It was a tried and true method of ensuring a task was completed. He intended to poison her. She bared her teeth and hissed. "Never."

"Liao, if you would." Yi smiled sinisterly as Liao forced her jaw open. "Fight if you'd like, I'll only break your teeth if need be."

Liao wedged his fingers in her cheeked, ensuring that her bite would cause both of them to suffer. "Sir."

Yi emptied the vial in her mouth and watched Liao close it and wrap his hand over her mouth. He himself pinched her nose, enjoying the vicious stare he received for his efforts. "One of my finest poisons. You have 48hrs to accomplish your task and return. You reward will be the antidote."

Cal couldn't hold her breath anymore and finally swallowed the putrid substance. She choked for air and shook her head. "You can't think I'm stupid enough to believe you'd be worth making a bargain with."

"You will just have to take your chances then. Honestly I couldn't care less if you die." Yi looked over at Cao Cao as he came down the hall. "However our lord seems to really like you."

Cal felt Liao release his hold. "Oh I am so special then."

"That's what you get for thinking you were done being my whore." Cao pulled her chin up to meet his gaze. "You still have such a long way to go before I break you."

"Fantastic." She pulled away from him.

"I know you have no intention of killing Ma Chao, so we'll do it ourselves. You will want to live for him....and so you will come back to us. He will be blinded by his love for you and his hate for me, thus sealing his fate. I hate leaving loose ends." Cao waved at her and turned back down the hallway. "Good luck."

Sima Yi looked into her eyes. "You do have a lot of potential."

"Want to give me a goodbye kiss?" She offered knowing the poison residue was still on her lips.

"A lot of potential." Yi grinned, she was good. He pushed the empty vial down her vest and lodged it in her cleavage. "It was a pleasure doing business with you."

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Chao looked out over the empty road and sighed. All he wanted to do was take care of her but that seemed to be the one thing he could never do. Everyone kept telling him she was capable of taking care of herself, of course she was, but he didn't want her to have to. How much more did she have to endure? Lotus nickered softly, someone was out there. "What is it girl?"

"Just me." Cal appeared behind him and led Ares over.

"You scared the shit out of me." He slid out of the saddle and wrapped her up in his arms. "Thank god you're alive. I thought I lost you."

_You probably still have_. She wrapped her arms around his waist and kissed him. One good thing about the damned poison was the traces of it disappeared quickly, another bad sign. Sima Yi knew what he was doing. "You're alright? I heard Jingzhou was a bit crowded."

"Yeah, I'll tell you about it sometime." He looked down at her. "Why are you so sad? You're home now."

"It's not over yet."

"It is." Chao grinned from ear to ear. "Lu Bu's still alive, we killed a decoy. Zhuge Liang is shitting himself right now knowing you'll come for him."

"What? Who set all of this up?"

"Ying. Oh and your husband thinks you love him because of your little spectacle earlier today." Chao pushed her hair back behind her ear. "You don't do you?"

Cal had to laugh. "Are you serious?"

"Just checking."

"Chao, never question that. So Lu Bu thinks that was all for him?"

"Yup. Self centered bastard."

"Exactly."

"So Ying wants you to play it up. She thinks he'll make his move tonight, with you."

"Alright." Cal nodded. There was still so much work to be done. And only 35 hours left to do it. Damn the sentries, they had cost her so much time. "Then I guess you'll be waiting?"

"Yeah. I have to scoop you up while you're still single. You get married too damn quick."

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Zhuge Liang stared at Lu Bu. "You know she doesn't love you right? That was for your son."

"Yeah?"

"I'm serious! Do you still want to take over this empire?"

"Yes." Lu Bu played with the matches on the table

"Good. I had Liu Chan put a sedative in Liu Bei's evening tea and Shang is busy reading bed time stores to him and Xi. Once your wife gets here, you have to be quick. She will play you. That is Ying's plan, so make sure you play along. Take her with you to kill Liu Bei, then you will see her true allegiance. Get rid of her. I will make sure the officers that must be eliminated are in the audience chamber."  
"Who are you getting rid of?"

"Pang Tong and Sun Shang Xiang. Jiang Wei will take care of Yue Ying and we will execute Wei Yan once he revolts. That man will never serve under me, it is a guaranteed kill."

"So how are you going to take care of Tong and Shang? I can see Tong, maybe...."

"That is my problem, not yours."

"Fine."

"We'll go ahead with the battle as planned."

"What about Zhao Yun?"

"He'll try to protect the new emperor....Liu Chan."

"Same goes for Huang Zhong, Zhang Fei and eventually Guan Yu. So what are we doing about Ma Chao?"

"He'll probably be lurking around the stronghold somewhere. You like to hunt don't you?"

"Hmmmm...."Lu Bu sat on the bed and waited. He did not have to wait long, within twenty minutes he heard a girly scream.

"AYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEE!" Zhuge Liang screamed again as Cal pulled out her knife.

"Go on, yell some more. It's music to my ears."

"CAL! NO!" Lu Bu burst into the room.

"Lu Bu? But....you're dead?"

"No. It was a scheme to get you back." He wrapped his arms around her "How long have you loved me?"

"Uhh." She turned her eyes away. She caught Liang's stare. "It happened along the way."

"Then Ma Chao was simply to get back at me?"

"You had Chan." She put her head on his shoulder and watched Liang smile. This was crazy, why was this man so damned stupid?

"Now that you have an option, what will it be?"

"I love him." She turned away. "But I'll only end up hurting him. I can't stop doing this."

"Mmmm. The choice is yours. But what will you do after this war ends, as it will shortly? Can you imagine yourself returning to Xiliang as his wife? Could you be content with being Lady Ma? Peace, you said once that you hate the thought of it. What really will happen when you have to be satisfied with nothing more then managing his household and making babies? Does that life sound good to you?"

"You know it would drive me crazy." She admitted, she knew he would have been right a few years ago. But after her last run in with Cao Cao, retirement was sounding better and better. Once Lu Bu was dead, she could change for good.

"But with me, you know there is life beyond this war. I will never rest long before bringing hell to someone else."

"Then you would betray our lord again?" she snapped defensively. Maybe too quickly, Liang sneered at her.

"No. You do realize there is more to this world then China. Hell, we might even get bored enough to try and take over Rome."

"You're crazy." She smiled at the thought and then began to think about it. The mighty Lu Bu riding Red Hare down the Apian Way.....It was an interesting notion. Too bad he had no clue how very powerful Rome really was.

"But you're thinking about it aren't you? How good it would be to conquer those who once hunted you." She put her head down and rolled her eyes as he continued. "We are one and the same. You may not feel as strongly for me, but I know you never want to settle down and that you want to keep the blood spilling."

"Fengxian...." She sighed dramatically. "I hate it when you're right. I guess we can't pretend anymore. We're just too different. He's Ma Chao the splendid and I'm Quinirius Calpurnia the assassin. I can't stop murdering people; I belong with someone like you." She hurt so much and she wanted Ma Chao to be the one to help her through it. Instead she felt Lu Bu wrap his arm around her, around his prize.

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Cal rested in the bathtub. Tong was busy making some concoction to make her feel better, something to dull the pain. She couldn't believe what a horrible day it had been, hell a horrible few days. Worst part was, there was a man that could make her feel better-but he wasn't the one approaching with a tray.

"I brought you some meat buns." Lu Bu grinned. He had balanced them on the tray all the way from the door. She didn't need to know he had them in his pocket the rest of the way from the kitchen. He put the tray down carefully on the bathtub, but the bathtub was not level. The meat buns slowly began to roll.

Cal couldn't help but laugh as he tried to catch the three meat buns before they hit the water. Plunk, Plunk, Plunk. It was comical to see him give it his best shot. "Thanks."

Chao stopped next to the door to their bedroom. That laugh was genuine....no she loved him. She was doing her job, that was all. He just had to make sure Lu Bu didn't do his.

"I have a surprise for you." He smiled and kissed her lips.

"Oh?"

"Actually it's a surprise for you and Xi." He grinned. "Come see me when you're finished."

Cal watched him leave. Was it happening? Now? Now that she had 30 hours left to live. She looked down at the water. If she didn't make it back to Wei, then she would die having spent her last few hours of life with Lu Bu. But if he was planning to make his move, then she was going to thwart it.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Zhuge Liang fanned himself and nodded to Jiang Wei. Wei grinned and trotted off down the hall, he had a date with Yue Ying. That bitch was going to pay for the pain she had brought upon Master Zhuge. Wei couldn't have been happier; he thought this day would never come. Finally....Finally.

Liang moved quickly into the throne room where Tong and Shang were discussing the possible alliance with Wu. "Hello." He put his fan out and blasted them both with an outrageously bright bean of light. The two officers crumpled to the ground stunned.

"Wow, that tingles." Tong tried to grab his staff, but he couldn't move.

"I upgraded my fan." Liang lifted it up for them to see. "It's called the Peacock Feather. Quite an accurate name isn't it? You never know how uniquely incredible the bird is until it fans out. I'm surprised you didn't notice Tong."

Shang tried to close her hand around the Sol Chakram that lay in her palm, but the brain messages weren't crossing the nerve synapses. The jolt from the Peacock Feather has interrupted the electrical impulses in their bodies. "You son of a fucking bitch!"

"You should both be honored. Tonight you'll witness a new emperor take the throne and an era of glory be ushered in. Then I will let you die." He zapped them again, just for shits and giggles.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Where are we going?" Cal asked knowing the answer.

"We're checking on our fearless leader, I know he wanted to see you before he went to bed."

"Okay." _That was a pathetic attempt. I do still have all my knives....yes I do._

"Sir?" Lu Bu knocked and smiled politely at a servant scurrying by. He let himself in. "My lord?"

Cal walked in with him and was startled what she saw. On the bed before them was a pale faced Liu Bei. She ran to him hoping that she wasn't too late. "Sir?!"

Lu Bu closed the door and watched her check his pulse and try to rouse him. "What's wrong with him?"

She looked down at him....she was probably going to look just like this in 29 hours. "He's alive...but his heart rate and breathing are so weak." She turned to the dresser to get some water, but when she turned back around Lu Bu had his hand around Liu Bei's neck. Slowly he began to tighten his grip and she saw her emperor's throat began to turn white as snow. With a fluid motion she flew across the room, pulled out her dagger and slammed it into Lu Bu's arm.

"Fucking bitch." Lu Bu swatted her away with his free hand and took the knife out, drenching Liu Bei's silk nightshirt with his blood. "I could have given you everything."

"All I want is your life!" She jumped up and dodged his punch, but not his knee. All the wind went out of her as he connected with her abdomen and kicked her into the wall. In an instant he was upon her, just like the first time they fought at Luo Yang.

Lu Bu took a candlestick and bashed it into her wrist to force her to drop her precious dagger. Then he cracked her in the head with it. "Looks like you'll get to die alongside your emperor after all." He threw her onto the bed and wrapped his hand around her throat, leaning over her body so that he was close enough to hear her choke.

Cal gasped for air and tried to break free from his hold. She was no match for Lu Bu, he outweighed her by almost a hundred pounds and he was seriously pissed off. He had her one arm pinned underneath her back and the other with his free hand, but it was his whole 6' 11" frame pressing down on her that really did her in. She had waited too long...the poison was setting in and delaying her reaction time just a fraction of a second...long enough for him to have gained the upper hand. Cal choked once more as the black dots began to overtake her peripheral vision then she looked at his power hungry eyes and smug grin before the blackness engulfed her.

AN: Sorry again, they're just too inviting. But here's a bit of a spoiler (Maybe/maybe not). As a tribute to one of my favorite pieces of literature chapters 33-35 are going to be names after Dante's famous works. I'm translating the titles into Latin to keep with the theme of my story, but the symbolic nature remains the same. So I'll post Chapter 34, Purgatorium tomorrow. Feel free to send hate mail.


	34. Purgatorium

Chapter 34

Purgatorium

Wei Yan looked up from his campfire and roasting squirrel when he thought he saw an odd flash of light through the palace window. How odd. Was Pang Tong playing with his staff indoors? No....he was always so self-conscience about fire hazards. There it was again....followed by a painful 'yip'. He narrowed his eyes and put his mask back on, something wasn't right. With his unique run he took off towards the palace to investigate.

"Where you off to, whelp?" Zhong queried as he saw his friend sprint across the small courtyard. Then Yan disappeared into the palace without a word. "Ah...you forgot a spice for your nasty roasted rodent."

Yan held the Comet Strike close as he trotted down the hall, silent as a snow leopard. He listened closely and head one voice very clearly...it was a very pissed off Pang Tong.

"YOU PRETENTIOUS MOTHERFUCKER!" Tong hollered before being zapped again. "OWWWWW."

"You might have to die now Tong. I can't have your outbursts giving me away." Liang smiled and began to contemplate his musou.

"Enemy....Die." Wei Yan growled as he silently crept into the room.

"Watch out for the zappy thing Yan!" Shang looked over at him, annoyed that she couldn't roll her head.

"Hmmmm....seen...before."

"Oh, I forgot. The savage is a man of the world." Liang smiled. "No matter."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ying flipped through Liang's notes and found nothing concerning the juggernaut unit she had created. Where the hell were her sketches? Why was he always assimilating her notes and sketches in to his stuff? She came across a detailed sketch of his new war fan complete with watercolor enhancement. "How pretty." She mumbled and tossed it aside.

"Looking for something?" Jiang Wei walked into his master's quarters and kicked the door closed.

"My Juggernaut files." She replied before turning to see the look in his eye. "What are you up to?"

"Ridding Master Zhuge of you."

"Oh, well in that case." She flung her scythe at him and watched him dance out of the way.

"Pretty good.....but that's not going to be very useful in the confined space of the antechamber." He ran at her and kicked her through the small doorway.

Ying flew across the floor and clung to her scythe as she did. With a well executed roll, she was back on her knees and charging at her assailant.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ma Chao stopped in the hallway and listened carefully. He thought he had just heard a thump.....and it came from the direction of Liu Bei's room. Slowly he walked down the hall, trying not to make any noise and miss the sound again. He moved closer to Liu Bei's door. Then he head a metal clank...like the sound a knife would make when it hit the floor. He gently opened the door and peeked in. What he saw made his heart stop. Lu Bu had Cal pinned to the bed, over Liu Bei's motionless body. Chao's eyes got wide as he saw his love go limp under her husband's huge frame, his brutal hand wrapped around her throat.

"You should have stayed in Rome." Lu Bu began to squeeze harder now that there was a lack of resistance. He had to make sure she was dead before he moved on to the emperor.

"You should have died at Xia Pi." Chao swatted Lu Bu off of Cal with the Stallion Fury and readied himself as the warrior grabbed his halberd.

"Little too late, boy. I've already taken everything she's had to give." Lu Bu cracked Sky Scorcher down on Chao's weapon.

"Then I will give her your head as payment." Chao blocked as Lu Bu thrust his halberd out horizontally at him, then he parried and scratched a jagged line across the man's face.

"You'll have to do a lot better than that!" Lu Bu began slashing at him furiously.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Wei Yan made the first move, dodging Zhuge Liang's single blast easily with his crouching attack.

Liang jumped back and unleashed the musou he hand been saving. Three bolts of light stop across the room repeatedly, but Wei Yan was too evasive and each one missed the barbarian general. "Come now, Wei Yan, don't you at least want to die like a man?"

"You....Die....Like....Snake." Yan stood up straight and twisted his Comet Strike over his head, nailing Liang in the head.

Liang flew back into the wall and growled when he heard "Yeah!" from both Tong and Shang. "Let's see how well you deal with this then." Liang dusted himself off and pointed his fan directly as Wei Yan. With a sneer he gave the simian a taste of the electrical shock he had subdued the others with.

Yan raised his weapon to block the powerful surge of energy. He had dealt with this shit before; sorceresses had tried to attack him this way once. He learned very quickly to clutch his weapon as tightly as possible; the shock would travel through him no matter what. He just needed to allow his Comet Strike to absorb most of the hit. He began to feel the tingling of his fingers; it was still getting to him.

"Why doesn't it surprise me someone's tried to shock you before?" Liang watched his opponent closely. "Like most unmanageable beasts, you often have to resort to crueler methods of training."

"Take his head Yan!" Shang screamed.

"Now my dear Lady Sun, I would think you might be interested in my plans for you. I thought death might be a welcome release from the suffering you would endure without your adoring husband."

"What have you done to Bei!" Shang tried, in vain, to grab her chakram again.

"Oh...not much. Just made it a little easier for Lu Bu to dispose of him. Don't worry, he didn't suffer." Liang took a few swipes at Wei Yan with his fan before jumping back over the motionless bodies on the floor. "However your Roman friend is a completely different matter."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ying closed her eyes as Jiang Wei shot her with three waves of magical attacks. The stupid boy learned his lessons well. "Is that all you've got?"

"You are fun to fight." Wei began to swirl at her and was quite irritated when she met him in a deadlock.

"What is you master up to, huh?"

"I thought you would have figured it out by now. We plan on taking over the country, then allying with Wu."

"You mean my husband will finally get to be the queen?" Ying smiled.

"You bitch; you never knew what a great thing you had." Wei jumped back and shot a light dart at her.

"Now...." Ying blocked with her scythe and smiled. "I was hoping that you'd actually fight me instead of relying on your parlor tricks. Quite a let down."

"I'll show you how fighting is done!" Wei snapped and began to musou her.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Chao waited patiently as Lu Bu tried to circle him in the large bedroom. It was an interesting battlefield; he had never thought he'd be able to use a chair as a launching pad for his down thrust. But then again life wasn't exactly turning out quite like he planned anyhow. He glanced over at Cal who lay lifeless over Liu Bei on the bed.....he thought he saw her chest rise and fall. With renewed fury he spun and brought his spear down on Lu Bu's shoulder. The man twitched and he used the moment to run to the chair, push off on it and jump down on the man who was becoming worse than Cao Cao in his mind. As he landed and Lu Bu was tossed back, he swirled around his spear and kicked the son of a bitch in the head.

Lu Bu fell backwards and groaned. The damned kid wasn't bad....he was actually really good. "So you're looking to replace me? You think you're man enough for that task?"

"Man enough yes, but I lack your cowardice." Chao waited for him to stand. "I suppose I'll just have to live with that, huh?"

"You won't have to live with very much for very long." Lu Bu looked up as Chao raced at him and poked him in the chest with his spear three times before spinning around and opening him up with a slash.

"This coming from the vermin who is covered in his own blood. Sorry, I don't play with my victims like you like to. I believe in honorable kills." Chao spun his spear over his head and took one hack with the momentum, severing the surprised Lu Bu's head from his neck.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Yan stood in front of Tong as Liang readied himself for another blast. "GRRRRRR..."

"Quick, charge him now!" Tong yelled.

Yan obeyed and raced at Liang, despite the shots of lightning flying past his head. He missed all but the last one, gritting his teeth he ignored the fiery pain that went through his body. He had to smile when Zhuge Liang realized his precious fan wasn't going to save his life. The strategist had allowed his opponent to get way too close.

Liang screamed in pain as Wei Yan slashed his body into blood ribbons of flesh and cloth. Staggering backwards he looked at the happy Neanderthal as he coughed up blood and hit his knees. In pathetic attempt to save himself he raised his fan up in front to his face to block the finishing blow.

Yan grunted and loped off Liang's head and the top half of the Peacock Feather that was in the way of the horrified expression of the traitor's face. Task completed he turned to the two officers on the ground. "How.....help?"

"Ying!" Tong said. "She'll be able to help....she's the only one."

"You have to help Bei!" Shang interrupted.

"He's alive....barely." Ma Chao ran in carrying Cal in his arms.

"Find Ying!" Tong restated. "I need to get my motor functions back!"

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Ying lay on the ground about five feet from her scythe. Wei had managed to include some small pieces of furniture in the aftermath of his musou and the wooden shrapnel had imbedded itself in her upper torso. It was pure dumb luck, but it swung the battle into his favor quickly.

"Now you die....." Wei advanced.

"Such a disrespectful tone for a young man...someone should teach you a lesson about addressing your superiors." Zhao Yun smirked as he plunged his spear through Jiang Wei and twisted.

Ying breathed a sigh of relief. She was going to have to give him a big ole kiss when this was all over. "Nice to have friends isn't it?"

Wei gasped as he looked down at the spear coming out of his chest. Yun had managed to slice his spinal cord on the way through and he was helpless. All he could do was watch as the Fierce Dragon was retracted from his body. He choked as blood and lung material began to work its way into his throat. "Sorry...Prime minister....."

"Ying...." Wei Yan ran over to her and Yun pushed Jiang Wei's body off his spear with his foot. "You...hurt?"

"Yes...but I'll be fine. Is Liu Bei...."

"Ok....but....need you." Yan tenderly picked her up and trotted out of the room.

Yun looked around. It was amazing how quickly things had played out. He had seen a weird flash from his position outside the fortress walls and come back to investigate. He thought it best to go through the kitchen, in case it was Wei trickery. Good thing Jiang Wei was so loud and whiney or he would have completely missed the confrontation in Kongming's quarters. Apparently this nonsense was not confined to this wing of the castle. He looked down at Wei who had breathed his last, dumb look still on his face, and ran after Wei Yan.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Hey Tong." Ying sat down next to him.

"You can take advantage of me now, I can't do a damned thing to stop you." Tong smiled. "Look, take my staff and do exactly as I say...."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cal opened her eyes and looked round the room. So this was hell? She always imaged it to have flames and resemble Gaul for some reason. If it looked like a room in a Chinese stronghold....well maybe the afterlife wouldn't be so bad. As she sat up she looked out the window....dark. Well that could be expected. She slowly stood and rubbed her head.....why the hell was there a bandage there? She jumped as a form came out of the shadows and grabbed her.

"Oh god...I thought you were going to leave me again." Chao squeezed her and began to cover her face with kisses.

"Wha....what happened?" She looked up at his face in the moonlight....he was perfect.

"Well...long story short. Liang, Wei and Lu Bu are dead. Liu Bei's tired but healthy and Tong and Shang are going to be a little jumpy for the next few days. It's finally over." He pulled her chin up and kissed her. Finally he could give her that emerald ring he had been holding on to.....

"How long have I been unconscious?"

"A day. I was beginning...."

"What? A day? As in 24 hrs?"

"That is the standard definition of day, yes."

"Awww shit." She sighed and put her head into his chest, no wonder she couldn't feel her limbs. "Honey....there's something I didn't tell you."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I say we stick with the battle plan we already had." Tong held his hand before his eyes and watched it shake.

"Yeah, we can't beat them, but we can buy some time." Ying shifted uncomfortably. They had managed to dig out all the splinters but damn if it didn't hurt worse.

Liu Bei yawned again and rubbed his eyes. "I don't understand why they haven't attacked yet."

"Would you put me down?!?!?" Cal growled as Chao carried her into the room. "I'm not dead yet!"

"Stop saying that!" Chao looked at Tong pitifully. "Help her...they poisoned her."

"I can still talk too." She swayed a bit as he put her back down on the ground. "Sima Yi's insurance. I'm telling you that guy is trouble."

Tong got up immediately and touched her face; it was a bit too cold for his liking. "What did he use? How much time....."

"Maybe five hours." She leaned against Chao...standing was beginning to become difficult.

"You can do something right?" Chao held her tightly. "RIGHT?"

"Five hours....."

"I just have to go back...that's all. Take my chances."

"No." Chao shook his head. "No. He can't take you again."

"Honey, if I stay I die. If I go....you have a fifty/fifty chance you can come rescue me."

"He has an antidote?" Tong asked.

"Maybe." Cal fought the urge to close her eyes.

"What exactly did they think you were going to do?" Ying asked.

"Kill Liang, burn the stronghold."

"Then get Liang's head, wrap it up and set fire to something." Liu Bei snapped.

"Right." Yun ran off with Wei Yan to carry out the orders.

"Take Lu Bu's head too!" Shang hollered after them.

"There has to be another way." Chao kissed her head.

"No. Just look at it as a once in a lifetime opportunity to save me." She kissed him. "I better go; I won't be able to stay alert much longer."

"You." Liu Bei grabbed her and hugged her. "You better come back alive, you got that? That is a direct order."

"Yes sir." Cal hesitated. "Can you take care of Xi if I don't make it back?"

Bei nodded. "Yes, but you're coming back unless you intend to disobey my orders."

"Thank you."

"Cal I can..." Chao started to say before he choked up.

"No. You don't need that Chao. If I don't come home.....well you need to move on and he's already been doing more parenting than I have. I better go."

"Hey!" Shang hollered. "You better come home soon; we just wiped out three of our generals. Besides, I'm going to need some intimidation to back up my threats when it comes time to negotiate with my brother."

"So my orders are to live and come home. Got it." She nodded weakly to everyone. "Take care guys....don't worry about me."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Xiahou Dun watched Sima Yi and Cao Cao look out over the battlefield, staring at something other than the fire that had lit up the night. The two of them had that smug grin that implied they had gotten away with something. Dun couldn't resist finding out what. As soon as he approached his cousin and the evil genius he employed he saw her. "Cal?"

Ares trotted up, his master draped over his neck and reached out to nuzzle Dun. He was the only one amongst the men that he knew; maybe he could help his mom.

Dun caught her as she fell out of the saddle. "Cal....where are you hit? Hey....can you hear me?"

Cao Cao took the two sacks off the saddle and untied them. The first sack he turned upside down and shook provided a special surprise. A semi fresh head of Lu Bu. "Well that's not as old as it should be."

"Nor will it contain a brain larger than a soybean. Where's the head I want?" Sima Yi smiled as Cao opened up the other and pulled Zhuge Liang's head out.

"Two heads and a stronghold torched. I think that entitles her to a prize." Cao laughed.

Dun looked up. What the hell were they talking about? He watched as Sima Yi bent down and dump a vial of purple liquid into Cal's mouth. "What..."

"An antidote. You can watch her come back to life if you want. It never fails to amaze the simpletons."

"What did you do?" Dun could tell she was pale, even in the darkness.

"Followed orders." Sima Yi smirked. "Now take your little friend and make her comfortable. I'm sure we're not done with her services yet."

Dun lifted her up and walked away from them, Ares followed dutifully. He nodded to Ren who came running over. "This is beginning to try my loyalty."

"It's that damned strategist! I swear none of them are worth a glass of yak piss." Ren took Ares's reins. "I'll meet you in your tent."

"Don't forget about the battle tomorrow! Sunrise!" Sima Yi called after him.

"God damned strategists..." Ren mumbled.

AN: This is a little shorter than usual, but I was really not into drawing out the fight scenes. (Amazing isn't it?) The battles are anti-climactic and the scenes are a bit choppy, and I apologize for that. I know this isn't one of my better chapters, but I kind of saw it as a transition chapter anyhow. Chapter 35 Paradisus, will probably take a bit longer to post. (I'm going to do a better job writing it.) I'm going to try and finish up my GTA:Luo Yang Chapter this weekend, so I may have to neglect this one a bit.


	35. Paradisus

Chapter 35

Paradisus

Sima Yi sat in the war room in Hanzhong looking over the map of the field again. There were two fortresses they needed to take before Shu would be vulnerable enough to be attacked. He pulled out his list of units and current locations. The lingering question was, what were they going to do without the skills of Zhuge Liang? Would they follow through with the plan their dead strategist had formulated, or would they adopt a new one based on Pang Tong's suggestion? Sima Yi sat back in his chair. He was beginning to understand Kongming's method of thinking, but this Pang Tong was another issue altogether. He didn't have the faintest idea what the little shit was capable of.

Running his hands through his soft brown hair, he looked back at the map. Two passes were available to the Shu camp, but both were fortified locations. The Wei army had many routes of attack down the mountain, three routes out of Hanzhong which branched out in smaller ones. It was good for them, the Shu army wouldn't know where they were coming from until it was too late, preventing them from taking the offensive. Well, unless a certain strategist got out there and taunted Ma Chao. Sima Yi grinned. Yes, that would be good. Draw him out; he probably had half the cavalry. He'd already have Zhang He down there with the entire archer division....yes they would fall quickly.

"So what are you planning to do with her?" Diao Chan snuck up behind him and sat down on his lap.

"You need to figure out how to announce yourself." He took a deep breath trying to slow his heart rate from the surprise.

"Sorry." She kissed him gently. "That make up for it?"

"I suppose. What do you want? You never are attentive unless you want something."

"You heard my question." Chan ran her delicate hand into his robe and played with his chest hair.

"Well...I was trying to recruit her for us....but I've since changed my mind. She will be way too difficult to control and she is very good at what she does. Frighteningly good. I think it will be best to get rid of her."

"Can I? Please." Chan ran her tongue up his cheekbone and nibbled on his earlobe.

"I have a better idea." He began to fondle her. "One that won't be so obvious to our lord."

"Yes, he is a bit obsessed. As if she's worth it."

Yi grinned. "You are jealous aren't you? Did you actually have something for Lu Bu?"

Chan shrugged. "I'm not one to linger on past relationships. He was destined to die, one way or another."

"What if...." Yi felt her tongue under his jaw...it was surprisingly nice. "We were to secure ourselves a long term investment?"

"Like?"

"Lu Xi."

"You want me to raise a kid?"

"Shouldn't be too hard, his genetics should do most of the work." Yi looked her in the eye. "Like a good hunting dog, they just know when to point and flush the bird. You just need to point them in the right direction."

"So you expect me to hang around that long?" Chan laughed.

"Yes. I'm going to make you empress of China. You won't walk away from that."

"I've heard that line before."

"Just you wait." Yi kissed her red lips. "I'll show you how good I am."

"Mmm?" Chan swung her leg over and faced him, straddling his lap. "Let me see then."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Alright, let's review our current situation." Tong had the enlarged map he had worked on spread out across the table. "This is Hanzhong up north, where the bad guys are. Here, is our position."

Liu Bei smiled, Tong was so much better at this it was amazing. Liang always unveiled his strategy and barely gave the generals enough information to carry out their orders. Tong made sure everyone knew the whole picture and even welcomed comments. "The east and west fortress must not fall....or else we are screwed."

"Exactly!" Tong smiled and picked up a box containing Lu Xi's wooden army men toys and set it on the table. He reached in and grabbed two horsemen and put one at each gate. "Ok, this is Zhao Yun at the East fortress, and Ma Chao at the west."

Yun began to play with his designated figurine and got a slap on the hand from Ying. "Sorry. "

"Next, archers." Tong pulled out one figure and showed it to Zhong. "You at the west gate and Wei Yan at the east."

"Ewww..I have to be with Chao?" Zhong switched his toy's position with Chao's horse. "I'll take the front, thanks."

"And finally the Infantry!" Tong pulled out a toy spearman and a toy swordsman. "Fei you are the spearman here, at the east gate and Ying you get the sword guy at the west."

"So where are we?" Liu Bei queried.

"Glad you asked!" Tong smiled and pulled out a heavily armored figure and a dragon toy. "You are the armored guy, over with everyone at the west gate and I get to be the dragon at the east."

"So we're the support people, hmmm?" asked.

"YES! You are smart. Here's your prize." Tong handed him a candied peanut.  
"I'm just happy I get to be close enough to the battle this time." He grinned and ate his peanut.

"What about me?" Shang whined. "I'm the one who single-handedly defeated the entire Wu army."

"That's why you get the pretty half naked lady archer figure from Liu Chan's collection." Tong put the figure on the map. "You get the juggernauts baby!"

"Wow, she's skanky. What are you letting your kid play with?" Shang picked up her toy and looked her over. "She is very detailed although kind of top heavy."

"Focus!" Tong tapped the map. "This is what we're up against. Xu Huang and Zhang Liao have their cavalry. Zhang He and Zhen Ji, the archers. Cao Ren, spearmen; Xu Zhu, pike men; and Xiahou Dun, swordsmen. I suspect Sima Yi will try and taunt you Chao."

"Yeah?" Chao wasn't really paying attention, he was trying to figure out by what road he could get to Hanzhong quickest.

"Chao?" Liu Bei squeezed his shoulder. "I'm sure Tong has something for you."

"I do, but not until dumbass starts paying attention. I worked all night on this presentation! I added color to the map, stole some poor kid's toys and even read through half of Kongming's notes."

"Sorry." Chao tried to look more enthused but instead looked like he was going to burst into tears.

"Alright." Tong pulled out the last figure of Xi's, Red Hare. "This is you. That frumpy horseman is Dai. You get to ride as fast as you can to the steps here, on the west side of Hanzhong. The steps are steep and stupid, so no units will advance down there and no horses can descend it. You can gain access to their camp that way, and they'll never see you coming."

"Really?" Chao asked and looked up.

"Yes, he's your toy." Tong put the Red Hare toy on the stairs. "They'll think you're down here with us, and Cao Cao will send most of his army to attack us. There will be one maybe...two reserve units. That's all. Go get your girl."

Chao smiled. "I will."

"But just Cal!" Bei pointed his finger at him. "Don't go attacking Cao Cao, you'll be too far behind enemy lines."

"Yes sir."

"Well shit." Dai looked over his cousin's shoulder. "I hope you're not planning on dressing me up or anything. I hate his taste in clothing."

"Nah, we're not going to open the gates until he decides to come back. But Chao?"

"Yes?" he asked happily.

"I am leaving a same ambush party for you to lead over here by this gate. So be sure to lead them back home when you return." Tong ate a peanut. "I like ambush parties, they are always so much fun. That's what the original plan was missing."

"So what happens after the rescue?" Zhong began to detail his archer figure with Tong's pen and ink.

"Well I hope they live happily ever after, but you never know these days." Tong smiled at Chao who had taken the city map of Hanzhong to study.

"I mean _us,_ oh Master Strategist." Zhong laughed as Wei Yan pushed a white cherry onto the toy archer's head and stuck one of his mask feathers into it. "By god whelp, you are a creative one aren't you?"

"Does that mean he gets to be prime minister too?" Shang nudged her husband.

"Nah, I thought I'd give that title to Wei Yan, he's got the personality for it." Bei laughed.

"And he did rid us of the previous slacker." Ying grinned.

"You know," Yun sat back in his chair. "We never did figure out what we were going to do about all the dead people. If we announce Lu Bu's dead, then Xi is in the same predicament he was before. If we announce Liang dead, then morale takes a hit and Ying gets labeled."

"That's ok." Ying smiled. "I know this guy that would find it very attractive."

Shang lit up. "Oh my god! I didn't realize it until right now! You're free! You can be with Tai now!"

"Except that he is currently protecting the enemy commander." Ying shook her head. "One problem is replaced with another."

"Oh I'll fix that." Shang punched her hand.

"One thing at a time." Bei cautioned. "Back to the battle. We have to get out of here alive, or none of this matters."

"You are good at this emperor thing, aren't you?" Tong giggled. "Okay. Chao is on a rescue mission, you are all where your people are on the map." Tong looked down at the figures....someone had moved them. "Fei, you did that didn't you?"

"What?" he asked innocently.

"That!" Tong pointed to the spearman lying on top of the lady archer. "That represents your queen dammit!"

Liu Bei reached over and grabbed his own figure. He flicked Fei's spearman off of his wife's skanky toy and pounded his piece into Fei's. "That's what you get for messing with my wife."

"Children!" Tong grabbed the figures and put them back into their designated places. "I knew I should have used wontons."

"Mmmmm...wontons." Wei Yan's stomach grumbled.

"Back to battle plans people!" Zhao Yun snapped. "God, no wonder everyone criticizes this kingdom."

"Long story short. Wei will attack, archers first. We shoot back. When we can't shoot anymore then we open the gates and the cavalry runs out, hacking and slashing. Then we roll out the juggernauts, pull back momentarily, toast the blue guys and all forces attack at once. All maneuvers will be done at both gates simultaneously. The goal of the battle is to defend, nothing else. We will achieve success if Chao comes home with Cal and we repel Wei so we can run to Yi Ling."

"Guan Yu has begun talks with Wu." Liu Bei held up the scroll he had received last night. "I believe it has revolved around insults being tossed back and forth, but he had fortified a location for us. We have ships waiting on the river to carry us there and force Wei to march. It should buy us some time, if negotiations fall through and we are forced to fight Wu."

"Well it should be a busy few weeks, huh?" Dai smirked.

"A few little cautions about the juggernauts." Ying cleared her throat. "They can spin very quickly, so watch out for flying shit. They spit fire, so stay back and they're made of wood and break so protect them."

"So stay back unless they're being wailed on?" Zhong asked.

"Yeah."

"Sounds like a damned good day to be an archer!"

"Can we keep our toys?" Fei asked.

"Not unless you replace them." Tong huffed. "Poor Xi looses his dad now his toys."

"Be better off without both." Ying mumbled.

"He's still so young; he doesn't know what's going on." Bei frowned. "He knows his mom is missing, I can tell that much."

Chao took a deep breath. "Well I'm going to go fix that right now."

"Good luck." Bei smiled. "And be careful. I don't care if you killed the mightiest warrior in China; we're the only ones who know that."

"Wow that sucks." Dai laughed and slapped his cousin in the back. "You killed Lu Bu and you can't tell anyone!"

"I don't like to brag." Chao got up and pushed Dai, "You do."

"Well shit." Dai grimaced. "That is right. Think of all the women I could have got with the 'my cousin killed Lu Bu' line."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Zhang He!" Sima Yi swooshed over to the pretty general.

"Sir!" He jumped up quick as lightning and smiled.

"Here, take this scroll. You're getting a new assignment."

"Yippie!"

"Get a carriage and meet my by the west gate." Yi watched him skip off. "What the hell happened to turn him into that?" He walked down the hallway and into Xiahou Dun's room. "Good morning." Yi smiled as he bound Cal's wrists behind her back.

"I thought Zhen Ji was the bondage chick nowadays." She groaned.

Yi laughed. "Oh this is so much better."

"So glad I came back." Cal muttered.

"You should be happy...I'm sending you home." Yi pulled her out of Dun's bed and drug her out into the hall.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"What's this?" Dun asked as he rode up to the carriage.

"I have a new assignment." Zhang He smiled.

"What?"

"I don't know...I think it's in some kind of code." He handed the scroll to Dun.

Dun rolled his eyes. He unraveled the scroll and looked at it. No wonder the fancy man couldn't read it, it was in Latin. "Who gave this to you?"

"Sima Yi. I'm his favorite."

"No doubt." Dun mumbled and scanned the message. He couldn't make out everything, but the gist of it was that Cal was heading back to Rome. _Dammit_.

"Can you read it?" He asked hopefully.

"No...it's such odd writing. I wonder what it means." Dun lied and handed the scroll back to him, barely masking his panic. "I better get back to my men; we're going to attack soon." He galloped off trying to figure out a way to save his friend.

"Bye!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The Wei army marched to the Shu fortresses and pounded them with a fire arrow attack. Shu archer units, under the commands of Wei Yan and Huang Zhong, tired to counter, but the onslaught was a bit too much for them. Tong was forced to open the gates early. He hoped that Chao had made it to the enemy camp already; someone was bound to notice he wasn't there. "Cavalry attack!"

The horsemen went through the fortress gates, four at a time, at a trot and then broke into small groups. Each unit was targeting a specific region of archers and then they would regroup and attack with their entire division. It worked well, but a lot of men were lost. Zhen Ji and Diao Chan, who hand taken over for the absent Zhang He, kept replacing the fallen Wei men. They had every intention of breaking the Shu forces with archer power alone.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sima Yi sat on his red roan colt, Tyrant, and stared out over the battle scene before him. Cao Cao was over on the Eastern path, whereas he chose the western path, mainly for it's proximity to the road to Saber Pass. There would be hell to pay when the emperor found out about his plaything being shipped out to India to board the first westbound trading vessel, but he could easily talk his way out of that. She was jeopardizing his safety not to mention his most loyal officers, Dun and Ren, were growing way too attached to their old comrade. It would only lead to shaken confidence and...thinking. He sat back on his horse and began to think about what Chan had told him before she left for battle. As she was dressing she told him about some information Lu Bu had relayed to her about Zhuge Liang's plans. He had to admit, the man was brilliant. So brilliant that he might have to follow through on those plans. Obviously, Kongming had been using Lu Bu to get rid of Liu Bei and Cal. That much was incredibly transparent. However it was the details that Sima Yi had to appreciate. Like the corruption of Liu Chan. That was something that would come in handy. If the boy was truly that attached to twisted strategists in robes toting war fans, well maybe they could be friends.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ma Chao galloped Lotus up the western slope and found the stairway that Tong had ridiculed. Steep and stupid were accurate descriptions. He dismounted and began the long run up the stairs to the top, where he hoped he would be able to find Cal in time. Once he reached the summit he helped a gate captain off of his steed and began to tear through the enemy camp. Everything and everyone fell to his spear, he was seriously pissed. The people had toyed with Cal, tortured and used her, and they had eliminated his family too. No one deserved to die more than Cao Cao...but he had to find her first. The thought lingered in the back of his mind; what if Sima Yi was lying? Another batch of Wei troops tried to attack him, and quickly died where they stood. He looked up at the palace, was she there or in a tent? Could she be in the town jail, stronghold barracks or Cao Cao's bedroom? He had to find an officer and find out fast. One materialized in the form of Xiahou Dun.

"You're Ma Chao." Dun said, more of a statement than a question.

"Xiahou Dun. We finally meet."

Dun struggled with his decision.....the blurted it out. "You have to go get her. Sima Yi is sending her back to Rome, via carriage and Zhang He's escort. I can't......I can't help her."

Chao looked at the man who allegedly was Cal's friend, yet had allowed many horrible things to befall her. "Why should I believe you?"

"Because I care." Dun hissed. "But if you don't hurry you'll be too late. I think they are heading for Saber Pass."

Chao thought it over and quickly turned back to the western gate. He wouldn't lie; he was an honorable man despite being devoted to Cao Cao. He was already risking his life by telling Chao that much....now he just had to go back and tell Liu Bei where he was going.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Sima Yi continued to form multiple plans revolving around using Liu Chan. It was actually quite enjoyable. He genuinely liked using people and then having them meet an untimely end. He grinned, well for a little while. He turned around; an odd sound had interrupted his thoughts. The sound of a few hundred men hollering at the tops of their lungs.

Ma Chao blew through Xu Zhu's pike men and turned back to the ambush party. "Keep it up men! Plow through them and keep moving! Don't get bogged down!" He turned back to the road ahead and saw a young man on red roan staring at him. Chao took an instant disliking to him; he now had a prejudice against robed people and fans. So he smacked him off his horse and sent him flying into a pack of bodyguards. He didn't have time for much else; he had to report to Liu Bei.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"How come you look so pissed off?" Liu Bei looked over Ying's shoulder.

"That bastard altered my sketches!" She growled. "My originals had a higher capacity for flammables."

"Well it's about time we attack anyhow." Bei watched Shang gallop back through the gate.

"Set fire to the juggernauts." Ying snapped. "We can't transport them and we can't leave them for the enemy."

"Right." Shang turned around and ran back through the gate. In two minutes the entire juggernaut collection was in flames.

"SIR!" Chao galloped through the gate and swung off his horse.

"Forget someone?" Bei asked.

"She's gone; Sima Yi sent her back to Rome."

"Then go get her!" Bei looked over at his bodyguards. "Go get Red Hare. You're going to need him."

"Sir.....what about you?"

"I can fight dammit!" Bei growled. "We escaped Cao Cao before at Chang Ban, with fewer officers and a smaller army. We can do it again. Now go complete your mission and meet us at Yi Ling."

"Yes sir." Chao grinned and jumped into the saddle. In an instant, the red blur was heading west.

"That boy better never let that girl out of his sight." Bei shook his head and looked over at Ying.

"I might give you the same advice about your wife sir." Ying smiled. "When she disappears you get cranky."

"So can I marry you off to Wu to renew our alliance?" Bei poked her in the ribs.

"Please?" She giggled but then her expression turned thoughtful. "I can't believe Liang's gone.....I can't believe he did what he did."

"I doubt we're ever going to really know the full extent of his plan."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Do you like my hair like this?" Zhang He looked at himself in the mirror. "Or unbraided. Because I'm beginning to like the way Dun keeps his hair."

"Well Zhao Yun keeps his hair down and he gets a lot of attention." Cal rolled her eyes and kept picking at the wooden manacles that locked her hands together. Stupid Chinese ingenuity.

"Well I do like attention." He responded. "So how far is India anyhow?"

"So that's where I'm going?"

"Yeah, they you'll go on a boat back home." He grinned. "Back to me! Do you think I should dye my hair?"

"Look, I really don't know how much more of this shit I can take. You should just kill me now."

"I know you don't care about how you look, but...."

"What? There is only one person in this carriage that is supposed to look like a girl, and it's not you Narcissus!"

"What would you know about style anyhow?" He snorted. "I've seen drawing of your homeland. All those buildings so cold and nasty. Sure they're impressive, but where's the warmth? They look like they're carved out of solid rock!"

"They are carved out of solid rock!" She banged her head into the side of the carriage. "One ton blocks of marble to be exact."

"Well it's brutal, just like you."

"Oh shut up."

"See what I mean!" He waved his claw at her. "You are just so unfeeling."

"Well it is part of the job." She sat back up and sighed. This was going to be a long journey.

"Rider approaching!" the head bodyguard hollered.

"Well hopefully it's someone with fashion sense." He opened the door and crawled onto the roof, kicking it shut as he went.

Cal fumbled with her restraint. If she was heading to India that wasn't nearly as bad as back to the Silk Road. There were a lot of people to disappear into in India, especially in the ports. Then again, Sima Yi would have instructed Zhang He to see her onto a boat and wave goodbye. He was going to be her shadow for the next few months...a very annoying perky one.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Chao caught up with the carriage and knocked out all the bodyguards with a powerful strong attack that blasted them off their mounts and left them all on the brink of death. He loved the fact that the attack was so damned effective. Then he focused on the girly man, Zhang He. So this is who Sima Yi entrusted with this task? Him?

"That was not nice." Zhang He looked down at his bodyguards twitching on the ground. "And I taught all of them to waltz!"

Chao watched as the man jumped off the carriage and knocked him clean off the back of his horse. Now he was impressed, the guy was quick. Freaky, but fast. "Well, it looked like you'll have a dance with me then."

"Oh you're so much more refined than _her_. It is nice to finally meet a noble."

"Don't insult the woman I love. I'll only kick your ass longer."

"Oh." Zhang He thought about it. "You and Cal don't see to be a very good match. You're very right and she's very wrong."

"Opposites attract. So can we get on with this? I've got a proposal to make."

"Awww...did you write a poem? Can I hear it?" He brightened up.

"Nooooo. Can we fight now?"

"Sure!" He began to zip around slashing at Chao. He didn't manage to land any hits, but managed to get caught off guard when Chao hit him with a musou.

Chao growled and charged the annoyingly talkative man and kept him involved in the attack long enough to beat 50 of his health out of him. "Leave now, and you stand a chance of surviving.

"There is beauty in a retreat.....I will see another glorious sunrise. Then you and I will settle this." He grabbed one of the bodyguard's mounts and ran off. Chao opened the carriage door and smiled at the woman he came to rescue. Why did she look mad?

"What the hell are you doing here?" Cal screamed. "You can't just abandon your duty! You should be fighting not chasing some stupid carriage into the hills!"

"Easy." Chao grabbed her face and smooshed it. "Liu Bei ordered me to come. Honey, you mean a lot to everyone, not just me." He let her face go. "Now let's get you out of this contraption and back onto a horse where you belong."

"Sorry...I didn't mean to yell."

"Well after dealing with Zhang He for so long..." Chao grinned. "I'm surprise you're still mentally fit. Here....manacles are off."

"You know..."Cal kissed him and let her tongue flicker over his parched lips. "Usually bandits get to manhandle their victims."

"I've missed you." He kissed her back, letting his tongue find it's way into her mouth. "But I'm not giving in."

"You said we would have to wait until I'm not married. Well you saw to that." She smiled.

"Then I'm restating it. We're not getting that intimate until _we're_ married."

"Grrrr..."

"I know it's been a few days since you were widowed, you haven't gotten married already have you?"

She kicked him. "No."

"Just asking. Give me your finger." He laughed. "Not the finger...your finger. Here" He grabbed her hand and pulled the ring out of his belt pouch. "I want to marry you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you and protect you. Will you take this and allow me to do that?"

Cal hesitated and looked at him, his honest eyes and the sparkling emerald ring he held in his calloused hand. "Chao I don't know if I can be what you need."

"All I need is for you to love me and stay by my side." He put his forehead against hers. "I need you to say yes and put this damned ring on before you find someone else to marry."

She smiled. "I don't want to let you down. I don't know how to be a good wife."

"You have never disappointed me."

"I recall a very angry righteous young man back at Tong Gate..."

"Yeah...I was a bit naïve back then." He leaned in and kissed her . "Marry me, Cal. Let your new life begin here with me."

"Yes..." She bit back tears. "I can't believe that this is happening..."

"Give me your hand first...Here." He grinned. "Now we have to go find our army. There are a lot of people who miss you."

"Are they still heading for Yi Ling?"

"As far as I know." He swung into the saddle. "There's enough room for both of us in this saddle. Your ex-husband had a big ass." He wiggled back in the huge 18 in saddle seat.

Cal took his hand and let him pull her up in front of him. With his left hand around her waist and his right around the reins and his spear, they turned back to the east on Red hare. Cal normally would be exceptionally pissed off about sharing a mount, but she was beginning to wish the ride would never end. With Chao's well defined arm around her and her head resting against his cheek, she was the most at ease as she had ever been. "I like this arrangement."

"Me too." He nuzzled her head and squeezed her hip. "I better enjoy it while I can. You won't let me do this again until we get home to Xiliang."

"I'll let you do whatever you want."

"See, you are going to be a good wife." Chao chuckled and hissed her neck as Hare sped down the dusty road.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"The gates have been defended, now what?" Zhang Fei hoped the answer would be 'drink'.

"We blow them up!" Tong giggled. "I'd like to see Cao Cao's army march through that pass without clearing out al the rubble from an imploded stone gate.

"I think you're going to get along well with Lu Xun if we ever get the chance to fight beside them again." Shang said thoughtfully as she leaned into her husband's chest.

"Well it's about time." Tong stretched. "I can't believe I'm the only one who likes to blow stuff up."

"The retreat is going well; perhaps you should join it now." Zhao Yun sat on Tsunami and stared at his emperor.

"I want to see the gate crumble." He smiled back at Yun who rolled his eyes.

"You are becoming impossible to protect."

"He's got me." Shang clung to Bei's arms. "That's all anyone needs to protect them."

"And..I can fight." He said sternly.

Wei Yan trotted up. "

"Huh?" Tong looked behind him and saw a string of farmers and peasants walking up.

"Lord Liu Bei" a man bowed. "We wish to aid you."

"My people..." Bei said astonished. "You wish to help me?"

"Yes, my lord. We wish to help you bring peace back to the land."

"Thank you." Bei stared after them.

"See! I told you everyone like you!" Tong grinned. "Now, Ying it's your turn to be Master Strategist. You're well versed on the 'attack and retreat' method, snap to it."

"Thanks Tong." She said dryly.

"Come on! Be happy, you just got to be Master Strategist for a day!" Tong smiled.

"Well then shut up and go blow up your damned gates." Ying pointed towards the gates

"Any chance you'll give up on Tai for a member of your own kingdom? Maybe a shorter guy....someone who digs kinky sex situations like you do?" Tong blew her a kiss.

"No." She snapped and crossed her arms stubbornly.

"Well, then I insist that man has to ask me for your hand! I can't let you just marry anyone without him being approved, can I?" Tong waved his staff at her. "Eh?"

"Fine. If he ever does what to get married then we'll come visit you." She rolled her eyes. "Crazy bastard."

"What's this 'if'?" Shang questioned.

"Yeah, it didn't seem like an 'if' on the boat to Nanjun!" Zhao Yun backed his horse up to look at Ying. "You're beginning to sound like Cal."

"Well....." Ying looked away.

"Ying." Bei smiled. "Have faith."

"We'll see how everything works out when we get to Yi Ling." Ying blushed a bit.


	36. Reunited

Chapter 36

Reunited

"Just let me beat the shit out of him." Sun Shang Xiang turned and stared at Sun Quan. "I always have, why stop doing what has always worked?"

"Sunny." Liu Bei took her hand and kissed it. "We're trying to ally against Cao Cao. Beating your brother will only make him more afraid of us."

"He has every right to be." Shang grinned at Zhou Tai knowing he could read her lips. "Because I'm taking his empire away from him. He doesn't deserve our father's empire."

Tai rolled his eyes and looked over at Ying who was doing the same. The sibling feud was becoming irritating. All the two could do was throw insults back and forth and drive everyone else in the room crazy. It was achieving nothing except making Quan whiney. The former pirate looked beside him at the other two individuals who were always in the room 'discussing' the truce. Zhou Yu was, as usual, distant and irritated. He didn't do very much since he was still not reinstated as master strategist, and he made that point very clear. Lu Xun was just plain worried. It would seem the fate of Wu rested on his young shoulders. Somehow he needed to stop the bickering, form an alliance and still maintain his favor with their lord. Tai returned his eyes to Ying who was always staring at him, undressing him with her deep brown eyes. He ached to be with her, but this nonsense was preventing them from being close. Quan always wanted to bitch about something, and Tai was the only one he ever wanted to bitch to.

Yue Ying smiled as she mentally pealed away Tai's plate armor and revealed his broad chest and rippled abdominal muscles. She paused in her mind, stopping to explore each muscle with her tongue and looking up into his deep dark eyes that always took her breath away. She stopped momentarily to realize that it wasn't just in her imagination that she was focused on his omnipotent gaze. He briefly gave her a smile that betrayed his desires. Suddenly she wanted to cry. Finally after all this time everything was right for them. She was no longer attached to Zhuge Liang, the distance between Cheng Du and Jian Ye no longer separated them and they both wanted to be with one another. But then the reality of the war stepped in, and despite the close proximity they were enemies. Sun Quan had attack Guan Yu unprovoked. That was not going to go away.

Pang Tong shuffled up and looked at the various array of emotions displayed upon the faces of the officers in front of him. Liu Bei was distressed, Shang pissed, Quan grumpy, Tai....well anyone's guess, Ying miserable, Zhou Yu haughty and Lu Xun chipper but anxious. Poor kid, he was trying so hard to stay happy despite his worried eyes. Overall four strategists, two bodyguards and two emperors. No wonder nothing was being accomplished. Cao Cao was approaching fast; they needed to work something or nothing out now.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Looks like our rear guard." Chao kissed Cal's neck before they got too close.

"You sound so upset." Cal rubbed his hand and kissed his jaw. "At least we still have an army."

"I didn't mean it like that."

"I know what you meant." She closed her eyes and enjoyed the moment while it lasted.

They rode up to a familiar figure standing before them in green. "Hi. Name's Guan Yu."

Cal slid out of the saddle and hugged the giant. "Nice to meet you."

"It's been awhile." Chao smiled down at him.

"Too damned long." Yu looked Cal over. She was bruised and obviously hurting, but her spirits were high. She had an optimistic look about her, something he could never recall seeing. "What's this?" He looked at the green gem ring on her finger.

"I got claimed."

"Chao is this your doing?" Yu looked up at the young man that was grinning like a child getting a new toy.

"Yeah."

"Well I guess we can talk about this later." Yu pointed in the general direction of the meeting. "They're over that way. I had to keep my distance; I've been dealing with that asshole too long."

"Well, shall we intrude?" Cal looked up at her fiancé.

"If you promise not to kill anyone." He held out his arm for her to grab on to. "You don't do that anymore."

"Well if she gave up on it entirely, she's a really shitty general now." Zhang Fei yawned. They had him drinking tea now...tea. Yuk.

"You know what I mean." Chao wrapped his arm around her waist again, where it belonged.

"What's with the tea, Fei?" Cal asked the huge man.

Fei looked at Guan Yu's face and sneered. "I'm an alcoholic."

"That's right." Yu smiled. "So we're being supportive, just like we were of your little problem."

"Yes..." Cal smiled at Fei. "Somehow murdering people seems a bit more severe than being continually drunk."

"Well," Fei rubbed the back of his head. "I should have been there when all that shit went down. Bei's my brother, how I could have let that asshole Lu Bu get that close to him or Liang drug him.....ahhh. It made me realize I was drinking too damned much to be of any use to anyone. Good luck convincing your cousin Dai of that though. He's trying to drink for both of us."

"Great." Chao rubbed Cal's hip.

"Hey, grabby." Yu put his hands on the saddle pommel. "That ring doesn't mean jack shit. Hands off in camp, we're still rebounding from the announcement that Lu Bu's dead."

"Big hit on morale." Fei stared into his cup. "So was old Zhuge."

"With Cao Cao closing in and Wu being stubborn, who can blame them?" Guan Yu looked over at Guan Ping trying to rouse his troop with boasting.

"Well, we're back." Chao smiled. "We'll see what that does for morale."

"So what did you tell them?" Cal asked, fearing the worst.

"We had to tell them the truth." Yu shrugged. "Wei assassins attacked and wiped them out. Technically you were kind of under Wei orders, you were trying to assassinate someone and they died."

"It's okay honey, I'll always know you killed him." Cal patted Chao's hand then stopped when Yu gave her the admonishing look.

"Behave, go see your lord. He's worried sick."

"Same old shit. That man's going to worry himself to death." Fei threw the cup at Ping. "Hey kid, I'll show you how to tell a story!"

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Liu Bei stretched as he walked out of the tent and looked over at the river. It was insane. How the hell was this going to work out? Neither one of the Sun kids would budge; they both had inherited that from their father. Then he heard a pot shatter, Shang had thrown something else. What the hell was he going to do? He looked up as he caught a glimpse of a red horse coming his way...was that....

"Hey? Can you point us in the direction of the war?" Cal asked and jumped off the horse.

Liu Bei walked up and wrapped his arms around her. "Thank god you're alright."

"And I'm grabby..." Chao muttered as he dismounted.

"AHHHHHH!" Shang screamed and ran over to them jumping on her friend and husband at once. "You're BACK!"

"I got rescued by this really hot general here." Cal grinned at Chao. "I offered him a reward but he's a prude."

"What's all the hollering?" Ying came out of the tent with Tong and Tai.

"Ooohhh. Group lovin'." Tong giggled.

"Hey, before I let go of you." Bei squeezed Cal, "Let me make one thing very clear. You don't have to protect me like that anymore. Okay? No more assassinating people or marrying the enemy......what's this?" Bei caught a glimpse of her new ring.

"That is what we call a ring. It is a finely crafted piece of jewelry that goes on your finger and....awwww...hurts a lot when a mean old Shu lord crushes your hand when you're being a smart ass." Cal tried to pull her hand away.

Bei looked over at Chao, "Young man I thought I made it very clear that you had to go through the proper method of asking for her hand."

"Well.....when the moment's right..."Chao shrugged.

"We should get back to discussing the treaty, or lack there of. If you are done with this display." Sun Quan growled from the tent flap.

"Ohhh...can I come?" Cal asked.

"I have the threat portion of the discussion covered. "Shang smiled. "Speaking of...hey Quan! You better not be touching yourself in there!"

Cal watched Shang run back into the tent. She gave Bei a smile. "I have been trained in methods other than killing."

"Oh yeah, sleep with him. Right after you get engaged. Sheesh." Tong nudged Tai "I can't believe you two dated."

Tai looked down at the short man and shrugged. "She just used me for my body."

"I'd like to use your body." Ying sighed

"Your kingdom is completely insane. Every last one of you." Tai laughed and walked back into the tent.

"So can I come in?" Cal asked. "Pllllllleeeeeeaaaaasssssee?"

"Sure." Bei began to walk back in. "You can't make matters worse."

"I'll see you later baby!" Cal scurried after her lord and gave Chao a wink.

"What did you mean by dated?" Chao asked Tong before the sage giggled and retreated into the tent.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I don't think it is fair for you to have another person in here. I mean what can she do?" Quan huffed and sat down.

Zhou Yu looked up at the new arrival and cocked an eyebrow. Quan's question was a good one, what exactly could she do? He sat up and crossed his arms. Whatever it was, it would be good.

"Well, let me tell you about what an independent specialist of the Remus Legion does." Cal smiled politely at the Wu lord and noticed she had everyone's attention. "Other than the obvious assassin and spy duties there is another highly entertaining task that we were trained to do: Demoralization. It's not really anything difficult, if you're already infiltrating an enemy army you'll want to make yourself blend in. So you immerse yourself in their culture, become one of the guys so on and so forth. It's really simple. Like this one time in Thrace. I had to spy on this one commander's unit, which I did. But while I was there gathering information and relaying it back to my forces I started fraternizing. Around the campfire at night I just started asking little questions. Like, "Did you hear the Roman's have three times our numbers?" or "Why is the General always drinking expensive wine and sleeping in fur while we starve and sleep in mud?" You get the point, right?"

"No, what is your point?" Quan snapped.

"Only that it would be interesting if someone started asking questions in your camp. Maybe regarding the unethical attack on Guan Yu? Perhaps the demotion of your famous strategist that was good enough for Sun Jian and Sun Ce, but somehow doesn't meet your standards."

Zhou Yu smirked; he saw where she was going with this. Quan was still unconvinced though. He looked over at Liu Bei who also understood how his young Roman was going to undermine the Wu lord's confidence. He watched as Cal began to pace.

"And now that I think about it, most of your men seemed shocked by Liu Bei's behavior towards me. Almost as he treated me as family, greeting me warmly with a hug after my horrible ordeal with Cao Cao. Now as I recall it was Sun Tzu who said "Look upon your soldiers as beloved children, and they willingly die with you." Funny how I, a worthless Roman soldier, have learned the wisdom of your greatgrandfather and not you. Me who used to consider bodyguards a renewable resource. I know there are quite a few men of yours that had to wonder what it would be like to serve a thoughtful emperor instead of some whiney little rich boy who can't leave his tent without his personal bodyguard. Oh...and on _that_ topic. I do have to wonder what you men would think when they're told that Liu Bei ordered one of his tiger generals away in the heat of battle, because that man's love was on her way back to certain torture and death. Yet you, Sun Quan, refuse to allow Zhou Tai to leave your side even though you are fully aware that he is in love with Yue Ying. How very incredible it is that our emperor could be so selfless for the people that serve him yet you can only pout and throw fits when your men try and have a life outside of your five foot radius."

"She can't do that...can she?" Quan asked Zhou Yu.

"That." Yu cleared his throat. "Is a question for your master strategist. A position that I, regrettably, no longer hold."

"I don't believe you." Quan growled obviously agitated.

"Fine, I'd love nothing more than to completely destroy your force's morale and have us attack in the morning. We'll add your men and probably quite a few of your officers. Then we will go after Cao Cao and give him the surprise of his life. And do you want to know why this is all possible, hmmmm?" Cal slammed her fist on the table and made Quan jump. "Because you never piss off a Roman. We'll sack and burn your town, assimilate your culture, split your shitty country into three parts and take everything without giving anything back in return. There was nothing that was allowed to tarnish the Glory of Rome, and if you dared us....by god your country was swallowed whole. These were my people. This is my legacy. And I will bring that hell upon Wei for everything that bastard has done to me. You think I fear your pathetic little kingdom? When I alone have destroyed armies with nothing more than a three inch blade and words? Please. All you need to do is issue a challenge. Are you up to it? I sure as hell am. I'm kind of curious how long it will take before I can deliver your army to my lord on a silver platter."

Quan looked to Lu Xun. "What is your suggestion, as strategist?"

"Sir, I have learned to stop doubting her."

"Dare me..." Cal challenged.

"I believe Cao Cao to be the greater menace." Liu Bei stood up and looked at Quan. "Since Guan Yu has forgiven you....I will as well."

"Very well, but this is merely an alliance." Sun Quan stood up.

"Damnit, I want his empire!" Shang hollered.

"Sunny!" Bei looked her in the eye. "First things first."

"How will we decide whose strategy to accept, or who will command?" Sun Quan began to regret his discussion.

"Easy." Tong smacked his staff on the ground. "Lu Xun gets to be strategist. He's the only one who hasn't had the chance in a major battle."

"Really?" Xun's eyes twinkled.

"Yup. Go get em kiddo." Tong smiled.

"I have a plan!" Xun grabbed the map excitedly.

"That was quick." Zhou Yu looked over and watched Xun grin.

"FIRE ATTACK!" Xun beamed and began shuffling miscellaneous papers off the table.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Then we meet again tomorrow morning to finalize our plans." Sun Quan nodded to Liu Bei and looked over at the happy Lu Xun being egged on by Pang Tong. How odd that the Shu strategist was encouraging the boy that would more than likely oppose them after this upcoming battle. Then there was Zhou Yu......what to do with him?

Zhou Tai watched Sun Quan's confused look run from person to person. Something Cal had said struck a chord and he could help but think about how his duty should not keep him from making things official with Ying. After all he still did have the pirate mentality of live for the day cause tomorrow you more then likely will be dead. He pulled his necklace off and looked at it. It was a coin, a simple silver coin, the first thing he ever plundered. It was really the only thing he ever kept, it would have to do. Without lifting his eyes from the pendant he walked over to Ying and shifted his eyes to meet hers. "It's not much, but I hope you'll take it as a token of my intentions."

Ying looked up at him as the people around them grew quiet. "Intentions?"

"Huang Yue Ying, will you be my wife?"

"Oh hell yes." She jumped up and looped her arms around his neck and kissed his cheek.

"Then let me put this dumb trinket around your neck and stop Lu Xun from giving you that come-hither look."

"DAMMIT! I told you I didn't know she was your woman!" Xun screamed at the top of his lungs.

"And I told you, missy, that rogue was going to have to ask me for you first! What is wrong with your girls? Don't you have any respect for tradition?" Tong shook his staff at Ying as she grinned.

"Fine, I guess he'll have to come back to camp with me, er us, and ask you tonight."

"That makes two of you." Bei crossed his arms and stared at Chao.

"Wow, it pays to be a widow around here." Lu Xun observed.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Zhou Tai." Tong sat back in his chair and looked at the man with a questioning gaze.

"Present." Tai watched Ying bubble with excitement as she sat next to a curious looking Liu Bei.

"Style name?" Tong asked.

"Youping."

"Ewwwww." Tong frowned.

"Awwww." Ying smiled. "I think it's cute."

"I agree, it sucks." Tai nodded.

"Okay, next question. What is your favorite food group?"

"Starch."

"True or false: Ying has fantasized about you being with other men."

"False, she's too selfish for that. She may have thought about you two together." Tai watched Bei frown and Tong laugh.

"What are you going to do if you get married and we go to war?" Bei asked.

"We will do our duty, as always."

"Do you like cheese?" Tong asked

"Yes."

"Are you going to turn Ying into a pirate?" Tong smiled.

"Is she going to turn me into a strategist?"

"If Sima Yi, Lu Xun, Zhou Yu, Ying and I were trapped in a room together forced to play trivia who would win?"

"The one that stayed home." Tai smiled back.

"Correct! Inevitable bloodbath would lead to forfeit. You win...." Tong looked around for something tangible. "Ah hell, take her."

"And here I thought I would have to speak to your actual parents." Tai welcomed his fiancé into his lap and watched a smile play across her face.

"Well I neglected to inform them that I'm a widow....so you'll be a complete surprise."

"Good. I'd hate to waste my imposing character on just military personnel."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Cal tried to wrestle her finger away from Lu Xi's tight grip as the child screeched with delight. "What do you think about all this kid? How do I tell you when you get older that I helped kill you dad because he was trying to build an empire for you?"

Wei Yan stretched out on his stomach and waved a small stuffed dragon toy in front of the year old child to get his attention. The boy chirped and latched onto the toy and Yan smiled. "Chao..new dad."

"And that talk makes it sound like you're missing your husband." Huang Zhong poked her arm.

"I can't help it.....there was a time when we really got along well. We were alike....then I condemned him because _I_ changed."

"He tried to kill the emperor." Zhong watched Xi slap at his mom's leg.

"How do I know...." Cal watched the two men look at her, "How do I know that it won't happen again?"

Yan laughed. "Chao...not...evil."

"I betrayed my husband. That is what I am concerned about. I changed once.....will I change back?"

"You changed for him, kid. That's the important thing." Zhong smiled.

"We're so different." Cal let her son tug on her bracers. "Differences that used to offend him."

"Where is all this coming from?" Zhong asked.

"I don't want Chao to be another one of my victims." She looked into her son's eyes and saw his father. She couldn't help but think back to when they had first met in Luo Yang, neither one of them had any idea of what the future held. Then there was Xia Pi and the disastrous ramifications of that fiasco. She had set him up for all of this, and then eliminated him when he was no longer of use. Wasn't that what she was so upset about back then? Cao Cao doing the same thing to him that Rome had done to her? Why the hell did she care? She never felt regret when thinking about anyone who had fallen by her hand, why now? Why for him?

"Lu Bu....bad." Yan took Xi and rolled over on his back to toss the child in the air.

"I'm just really wrong for Chao. He's gorgeous, honorable an important man. How do I fit in? I'm just a plain commoner, from an entirely different world. My existence has depended on me doing the sort of things people never wanted to get their hands dirty with and I don't know how to be a wife. I'm a soldier...and I don't think I am going to do well outside of army life."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Alright, Zhou Tai's interrogation is complete...on to you." Liu Bei walked over to the campfire and looked down at Chao as he sat beside Zhang Fei and Guan Yu.

"The way you're talking it sounds like _you're _the one that's going to be approving him." Yu queried to his brother.

"Well it's nice to know I'm not sounding cryptic." Bei frowned.

"Xuande, I initially asked her to join us to protect you and give you someone to sleep with." Yu reminded him.

"You what?" Chao was surprised.

"Hey yeah!" Fei pointed an accusatory finger at his oldest brother. "We did figure she was going to jump in your bed."

"What's happening?" Cal walked up with Shang and only heard a part of the conversation.

"Did you know that Yu recruited you to sleep with Liu Bei?" Chao asked as his woman leaned against him and played with his hair.

"It was just an added bonus." Yu smiled.

Cal frowned. "I wish you boys were clearer on your orders. I can't believe I missed out on that opportunity."

"HEY!" Shang latched on to her husband.

"Oh it was well before you liked him....or even before he liked you. I kind of remember you running away from her and being pissed about your horse's mane being braided."

"Uh....well...that was before I really knew her."

"And you never told me you wanted to sleep with him!" Shang snapped.

"When I told you how good he looked without a shirt on, you should have picked up on that."

"Damn." Shang looked away thoughtfully. "I did miss that one didn't I?"

"Talk about missing out." Cal winked at Liu Bei. "Grrrrr..."

"Honey. You're making me nervous." Chao patted her thigh.

"Anyhow." Yu drew their attention back to him. "The fact of the matter is that I was the one who brought her to Shu and therefore I should be the one who asks the questions and reviews his answers."

"Tough luck huh?" Cal began playing with Chao's ear.

"Stop that!" Yu pushed her hand off the happy young man. "No foreplay until he suffers through a talk with us!"

"As long as I get to help." Liu Bei pecked Shang's cheek with a kiss.

"What about me?" Zhao Yun came up to the fire dragging Ma Dai. "You need to help him. He drank so much his gut's going to burst. I don't really know how to make him stop, so I'm giving him to the recovering alcoholic."

"Yippie." Fei looked down at an unconscious Ma Dai lying in a pile of leaves.

"So, can I piss off Chao too? I've had to hear him describe her with adjectives I've never even heard of before." Yun watched Guan Yu shrug an acceptance. "Excellent."

"Great....this is going to take all night isn't it?" Chao asked hesitantly.

"Yup, so better start now." Yu walked into the tent.

"Enjoy baby." Cal gave him a kiss. "After you're done with them come see me."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

AN: Sorry this is taking so long to post, I've gotten myself distracted with Legacy of the Lunar Spear. I've tried to take a bit more time with this chapter, the last two were somewhat rushed and I'm not incredibly fond of how well they were written.

**SexieVixen: **I'm along way from being finished with this one so don't worry. I still have a few more battles, the fates of the three kingdoms to settle, a Sima Yi plot to evolve, the married couples trying to cope with home life away from the army, Liu Chan getting himself into trouble and I'm sure much more. Nice to know you're still out there!

**Abbasabu**: To answer your questions/comments

1. I disagree. From a game perspective: I've been able to beat Lu Bu's ass with Ma Chao consistently, even in duels. Novelwise: Cao Cao ran like a wussy from Ma Chao but hunted Lu Bu like it was an ordinary deer-drive. Lu Bu may have fought the three brothers, but he took off when he got tired and thought he might get nailed from behind. Ma Chao fought Zhang Fei for two days and ended up in an even match-and probably would have continued to fight him had Zhuge not decided to recruit him instead. Anyhow it's all a matter of debate since the boys never got a chance to fight one another. However in my fictions, Ma Chao will always win because I like him and in DW games I never loose when I choose him.

2. Those robed strategists have those light blasting fans.....bastards

3. I had to let Zhang Fei turn into a worthless alcoholic since I had way to many characters to work with. Having enough worthless alcholics in my own family, I knew having him disappear for a while and miss out on important events was plausible. I gave him some AA help to get him back involved in this chapter after something traumatic, ie assination attempt on Liu Bei, made him realise he was missing out on life. Besides, Lu Bu and Zhuge were so high maintenance I didn't neeed anothe boy to look after. Huang Zhong had to be parted from Wei Yan because he was ordered to, funny thing about the army.

4.Well we'll have to see what I have in store for those boys....

**Ticktock44:** I know it seems like it was moving way too fast, but I had to end the old plots and schemes and move on with the new. I wish I could have done a better job on those battle scenes, but I was just so damned lazy. I had an image of a LB/SSX daughter wielding twin swords....but I'll save that for another story. Have to wait too long for the stupid kids to grow up. No wonder everyone just adopts someone out of their ranks.

**Guan:**Thanks for the info about the stylenames. As always, I appreciate your opinion.

**J.Wei:** Thanks a lot. I'm glad you enjoy my work. I do need to get back to the GTA:LY story, I have that one half written. I'm getting tangled up on the character development, actions scenes and general mayhem. Not to mention distracted by other stories. I should have realized by the time I reached Chapter 36 this one would be highly involved and complex.. Don't worry, Jiang Wei will be a good guy in the rest of the fics I've got going. Something about this one just makes me want to corrupt and kill off characters.....

**The Chronicler: **Don't worry, Liu Chan will create some massive havoc.....hehehehe...


	37. Preparations

Chapter 37

Preparations

"So what is everyone's problem?" Ma Chao paced back and forth in the tent.

"Chao we don't have a problem." Guan Yu assured him. "We just have some cautions."

"Like what? I already know about her past and her issues." Ma Chao snapped.

"Mengqi, we're just trying to help." Zhao Yun jumped up on the table so he could sit on something.

"Help what? Postpone my wedding?"

"Help you realize how difficult your decision is going to be outside of this army." Guan Yu sighed. "Chao you have to remember you're an inter-racial couple...people aren't very forgiving of that."

"So you have a problem with it?"

"We never did." Liu Bei spoke up. "But you're going to take her home with you and I don't think the people of Xiliang are ready for that. It will be very difficult for both of you. Remember that a lot of people look upon foreigners as intruders. We have ignored our differences because she has vowed to fight our war with us. That in the mind of a soldier is more important, but in the eyes of the civilians...they will only see her skin color. You may never be able to force them past that."

"So what?" Ma Chao growled.

"So..."Guan Yu toyed with his beard. "They're going to give you a hard time. More so because you're their lord."

"So? I will stand by her."

"Chao..."Bei wondered exactly how he was going to say this without getting himself in trouble. "Sometimes your duty to your people stops you from doing what you think is best for your family."

"Look, I know I screwed up before. I was so fixated on what I needed to do to be the Prefect I never thought I would have to be. I pushed her aside because I thought it was what I was supposed to do...not because she was different."

"We're not saying you did..."Guan Yu rubbed his head.

"That's what it sounds like to me. Did you put Zhou Tai through this?"

"Not exactly...." Liu Bei looked away

"Well that's great." Ma Chao snapped. "Send Yue Ying off with the enemy without so much as a word of protest but put your own general through hell. This whole time you've known what was going on! You even encouraged it!"

"Chao stop yelling." Zhao Yun cautioned. Liu Bei was a very tolerant man but somehow screaming at your emperor just appeared to be an overall bad idea.

"Why?" Ma Chao turned his anger on his friend. "Of all the people here you should be supporting me, don't you think?"

"Calm down." Zhao Yun said in his soothing voice. "You're making a big deal out of nothing Mengqi."

"NOTHING?" Ma Chao hollered. "I'm being put on trial for no good reason. The three of you have not only encouraged this but assisted me. Now you're changing your mind? That's nothing?"

"No one is changing their mind..." Guan Yu closed his eyes. _Oh god, this is going to be a long night._

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Why is there so much...yelling?" Ma Dai groggily opened his eyes and looked up at Zhang Fei. He didn't remember what had happened or why he was here. However if he was close to Fei it meant he probably had too much to drink. So why was Fei looking so...sober?

"Your cousin is officially asking for his woman." Fei ate some Peking duck. "Something he apparently takes offense to."

"Chao...takes offense to everything." Dai tried to sit up out of the leaf pile but thought better of it. His head was pounding and those nice crunchy leaves were just so soft.

"Well screaming at Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhao Yun is not the best way of doing anything. He's got balls, I'll give him that."

"He always picks the weird chicks." Dai grumbled. "Don't think he's ever gone for a homegrown lady."

"Really?" Fei wasn't really paying attention. He was annoyed enough with the prospect of babysitting the younger Ma till his hangover subsided, but listening to him babble on was going to make him drag him over to the Wu camp and leave him there. Possibly even the Wei camp.

"Yeah." Dai grinned with the memories. "First it was Cai Wengi. She's from one of the northern tribes.....became a witch too."

"You don't say."

"Yeah, they played 'I'll show you mine if you show me yours' when they were out on the tundra." Dai began to chuckle only making him realize that expression of emotion made his head hurt. "Chao squeezed her boob so damned hard she gave him a black eye. Tie and Xiu never stopped teasing him for that."

"Good to know." Fei frowned as he looked into his cup filled with aromatic tea. Disgusting tea.

"Not surprising he likes Cal so much. Some guys just dig those foreign chicks."

"Well I'll go put in a good work for him."

"Too bad his momma hates em..." Dai added after Fei left. Slowly he drifted back into his happy alcohol induced slumber.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Hey there pretty lady." Pang Tong sat down next to Cal, Huang Zhong and Wei Yan. "What's with the weird look?"

Wei Yan rolled his eyes. "Stupid...women."

Cal smacked him. "It's not stupid."

"Our little friend is feeling guilty about the death of her husband." Zhong informed the sage.

"Well that's just a waste." Tong produced a paper from his cloak. "I did find something however that I thought you might like."

"Look, Tong's providing entertainment." Yue Ying snickered as she walked by with her future husband. "This ought to be good."

"And I thought he streaked for entertainment around here." Tai sat down next to Ying and smiled a greeting to the Shu generals.

"I save that for special occasions" Tong winked. "But here, my young Roman friend is the Chinese Zodiac." Tong handed her the parchment paper with wonderfully colored drawings and descriptions.

"Great. Too bad I can't read it." Cal sneered. All of these illiteracy accusations were seriously pissing her off.

"What was Zhao Yun teaching you?" Tong snatched the paper back and spread it out on the ground.

"Surprisingly he didn't read me my horoscope."

"Horo..what?" Zhong asked.

"Well that's what the Zodiac thing is for, right? We have one back home too. You're not the only ones with that idea."

"Yes, I did hear of that ridiculous mockery." Tong scoffed. "This is the real thing. It's done by birth year and it's accurate."

"Fine. I'm a Scorpio." Cal crossed her arms and watched the quizzical looks turn to her. "What?"

"Translation?" Yue Ying asked.

"Scorpion."

"Not an option, sorry!" Tong grinned. "But nice try, I bet it isn't accurate anyhow."

"Obsessive, sexual, secretive, forceful, obstinate....makes lifelong enemies by being outspoken."

"Hey that is pretty good!" Tong smiled. "But it's still crap. So let's look at the real thing shall we?"

"You must have already worked this out." Ying said as the sage gave her a wink.

"You my love, are a sheep." Tong smirked at Cal.

Cal frowned. "I think scorpion is much better than sheep."

"But wait! It gets better." Tong cleared his throat. "So the sheep is elegant and creative...Timid"

"And obviously not me then..."

"Shhh..." Wei Yan smacked her knee.

"Prefers anonymity. Pessimistic and often puzzled about life. The best part is you are compatible with Rabbits, Boar and horses but never oxen."

"I do like pork and I love my horse. Never did care for oxen, too damned slow." Cal said thoughtfully.

"Other signs dumbass." Zhong laughed. "If I recall, since the signs go by birth year, the preceding year to the Sheep is the horse. That makes your precious Ma Chao a match."

"Really?" Cal smiled. "That's nice. So who are the other people?"

"I'm a rabbit." Ying responded.

"Certainly have the sex drive of one." Tai smirked and kissed her hand.

"Liu Bei is a boar and I am an ox." Tong took off his hat. "So that's why I could never get you in my harem."

"But we get along just fine." Cal protested.

"Not in love, baby."

"Ox...too." Wei Yan grinned up at her.

"So what is this ox thing then?" Cal looked to Tong.

"Well we're 'bright patient and inspiring to others. Can be happy by yourself but make an outstanding parent. Errr...the sheep will bring trouble.' Better back away from the Roman Wei Yan."

"So that's why you keep stealing my kid and he keeps tutoring Lu Xun?" Cal asked Wei Yan who only replied with a grin.

"The best part is this!" Tong ran his finger over the chart until her found what he was looking for. "Lu Bu was a rat."

"Didn't need the chart to tell us that." Zhong mumbled.

"Ambitious, works hard to achieve goals and acquire possessions. An easily angered perfectionist. Seldom makes long lasting friendships. Compatible with Dragons and Monkeys...least compatible with horses."

"So you're telling me that he was destined by the year of his birth to have issues with Chao." Cal rolled her eyes.

"Oh don't be so skeptical." Ying smiled. "Kongming was a cock, read his."

"Once again, didn't need a chart to tell us that." Zhong snickered.

"Rooster. 'Pioneer in spirit you are devoted to your work and quest after knowledge. Selfish and eccentric. Rabbits are trouble..." Tong started to laugh.

"See it does have something!" Ying grinned as the other generals laughed.

"All I see is that Chao has an equally good chance of being happy with anyone who was born in the same year as me......besides what is the description of the horse anyhow. I bet it doesn't even match him."

"Popular and attractive, hot-blooded and independent, impatient, doesn't listen to advice but needs people. Marry a tiger, dog or sheep." Tong gave her his smug smile he only reserved for Zhuge Liang.

"Damn."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Zhou Yu poked his head into his tent and saw his pretty little wife already asleep in their cot...alone. He took a relieved sigh and entered the tent. For the past few months all of his attempts to be alone with his wife were interrupted by her mourning sister, Da. The obnoxious older sister was always needing something: a shoulder to cry on, her sister's opinion, Zhou Yu's warm body to cling to as she sobbed herself to sleep. It was driving him insane. The last time he had the chance to have sex with his wife was months ago and it was taking its toll on his mental health. Finally, they could be alone.

With a sweet and melodious whistle he woke up his wife and she blinked awake. With a knowing grin she sat up in bed and watched him begin to take off his robes for her. It was their ritual, the initiator would always strip for the other and then pounce. He could see Xiao's face light up as she realized the implications of this moment. They were finally going to be alone. Disrobed, Zhou Yu leapt on his wife and began to kiss her petite neck.

"Oh...I've missed you so much." Xiao purred.

"Likewise my dear." He paused and looked into her young face, "You have no idea how hard this has been for me."

"I want to do everything...that involves only two people."

"Your wish is my command." Zhou Yu began to pull her nightgown off and only succeeded in ripping it. He was way too excited to pause and just finished ripping the whole thing, turning his wife on more.

"Yes...I am yours...take me!" She squeaked.

He was about to lean in to kiss her but hear a familiar sound. A sound that made him become so agitated that he could feel the small vein over his temple begin to throb. A sound that he was sure would be the death of him. A sound that any other person would have merely considered to be Da Qiao's meek attempt to clear her throat and announce her presence. "Send her away." He growled through clenched teeth.

"Sis? You in there? I....I'm lonely."

"Not right now Da!"

"Please?"

Xiao looked up and watched her husband try and strangle himself with his own hair. "Can this wait...for an hour?"

Da began to cry. "I need you...now. I'd be there...for you."

Zhou Yu threw his hands up and put his pants back on. "I'm going to check on Lu Xun."

"Come in Da." Xiao said and threw her head back into the pillow.

Da popped into the tent and looked at her sister. "Thank you."

Xiao began to cry as her sister crawled into the cot with her. Da only took it as a sympathy cry, but Xiao's tears were out of frustration.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"This is bullshit." Chao pointed an accusatory finger at Zhao Yun.

"You're the one turning this into your court-martial. Don't blame me." Yun shot back.

"This is good. I should have come in sooner." Zhang Fei tossed some fried noodles into his mouth and smiled.

Guan Yu was leaning back against the table watching the simple meeting turn into a brawl. He should have known there was no good way to broach the subject with Chao, he was always so defensive. He leaned back and whispered to Liu Bei. "This is your fault, you should have never told him about Zhou Tai."

"You're the one who thought you could handle this...your fault." Bei smiled back.

"Hey Chao! Who's this Cai Wengi chick?" Fei shouted over the quarrel.

Chao stopped mid-sentence and looked at Fei..."Who told you about her?"

"Your stupid drunkard cousin." Fei responded and ate some more noodles.

Zhao Yun saw a way to win the argument. "Another girl? Now this is something that we should be grilling you about."

"We haven't dated since I was fifteen." Chao growled.

"I hear she's a witch." Fei smiled.

"Yeah...she's into that sort of stuff. Just an old friend."

"So you dig foreign chicks huh?" Fei crunched on some noodles. "I guess someone has to. Leaves more women for Zilong. Not that it seems to matter."

"Hey, this isn't about me." Yun snapped.

"Ooohhh. Sensitive." Fei chuckled. "Still you haven't gotten laid in how long?"

"Not the issue Yide!" Zhao Yun snapped.

"Did he just mediate?" Guan Yu whispered to his lord.

"I think so..." Bei pushed another bowl of noodles down to their youngest brother as payment.

"Seriously Zilong, how long can a man go without a woman?" Fei crunched some more noodles out of existence.

"This..." Zhao Yun growled, "Is not about me!"

"I understand that Chao here is trying to be all honorable and not screw the woman that's been humping his leg since Tong Gate, but you refuse hordes of loose women every day." Fei slapped Guan Yu's hand away when the giant tried to take some of the noodles.

"So does this mean I can get married?" Chao asked.

"Beginning to worry about you Zilong. I hear Yue Ying's got some little watercolor postcards of you....and you know she doesn't like to look at her men alone."

"What?!?!?"

"Ummm....what about me?" Chao asked.

"Yeah, I think there are some pictures of you too kid." Fei answered.

"I was talking about my future wife."

"Yeah, I've seen the pictures of her. Man did they alter her. Tits are bigger than mine."

"Why are you looking at drawings of my...fiancé?" Chao queried

"Came in the collection." Fei smiled.

"What collection?" Guan Yu asked.

"Lady Generals of the three kingdoms collection. Man, Xuande, you ought to see Shang. She's the most vivid one; I bet someone's been watching her bathe."

"Excuse me?!?" Liu Bei looked up at Guan Yu and then back to Fei. There was pornography floating around, of his wife?

"Can I go confirm that I'm going to marry Cal?" Chao asked. "If you make me wait too long she's going to talk herself out of it and ride into the sunset alone."

"Man, you better marry that woman or she's going to end up with him." Fei pointed at Zhao Yun.

"WHAT?!?!?!" Yun screeched.

"Two really sexually frustrated people...you know that's how Zhuge and Jiang Wei got into they're little thing don't you?"

"I don't know what's worse. You thinking I like men or you wanting me to screw Cal...she's practically my sister..." Yun yelled.

"Well I never heard of any sworn oath between you two so the possibility is still there." Fei retorted.

"You bastard...ever since I first joined Shu you have been throwing that in my face!"

"You're just a good friend. Not family like us." Fei snickered. "Go find someone your own age to agree to die with."

"I will!" Yun threw a meat bun at Zhang Fei and stormed out.

"So..." Chao looked to the three men. "What is your decision?"

"Stop screaming at my brothers and marry your damned horny girlfriend before she goes mad. And someone needs to buy Zilong a concubine, he's getting hyper." Fei shook his head. "Like Shang Xiang before she got in Xuande's pants."

"Yide...what is this about nude pictures of my wife?"

"Right on brother!" Fei smacked Liu Bei shoulder. "You got a hot wife."

"But...."

"There are pictures of you too..from what Yue Ying tells me. But you're with Zilong. Hopefully they aren't as well drawn." Fei belched.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

""So did they approve of you?" Sun Shang Xiang asked as Ma Chao came over to the fire.

"I think so."

"You think?" Cal asked. "Shouldn't we clarify this before we get any further?"

"HEY!" Zhao Yun ran up and pulled Cal to her feet. "We need to be sworn siblings to smite the stupid oath brothers."

"Huh?" Cal looked at his pleading eyes. "Honey, I think Guan Yu does enough smiting to fulfill our needs."

"Too late, Zilong!" Shang screamed, "We already swore our oath in the garden! Me, Cal and Yue Ying!"

"Technically we just swore to protect Liu Bei. Nothing as terminal as dying at the same moment." Yue Ying reminded her queen.

"So what do you say?" Yun asked.

"Is this just because you don't find me attractive and I've seen you naked?" Cal asked.

"No."

"Hey...why did you see him naked?" Chao asked.

"When he got shot back at Mt. Jie Ting. You remember I stayed in his room forever, what did you think I was doing?"

"I thought the servants or nurses were doing that." Chao frowned.

"Please. And let those crazed fan girls take advantage of him? What kind of a friend would I be?" Cal smiled.

"What about these so called relationships with Zhou Tai and Lu Meng?" Chao asked and gave Tai a questioning glance. The pirate just gave him a smirk.

"Oh nothing to worry about. I date the people I don't sleep with."

Zhao Yun grabbed her chin and made her look into his face. "Focus on the important thing."

"What is that going to do for me? Can I have a style name if I do it?"

"You can have a style name whenever you want. You make them up yourself." Yun replied. "But I'll give you one if you just do what I want."

"This is why you're the man-whore of Cheng Du. Give me a style name if I do what you want...phst."

"Calpurnia, you know you want to. Think about it. If anyone gives you shit about marrying the golden boy then you can say your brother will come kick their ass."

"Zilong, if anyone gives me shit I'll slit their goddamned throats. Besides, why would I call on you when I'm married to him? He's better with his spear than you are."

"Ha!" Chao chuckled.

"Look, you've already quoted Sun Tzu and used it in a practical application. The first step to becoming more accepted. Think about how good it would make your husband look if you were a sworn sister to Liu Bei's bravest and most praised general."

"What about all those pictures of you and him...." Cal watched his eyes cloud over. "Alright, if you really want to."

"GREAT!" Yun chirped. "So what the hell do we do?"

"No peach orchards around here, you might be out of luck." Yue Ying smiled.

"Give me your hand." Cal shook her head and pulled out her boot knife. "This is how we do it back home. No prayers, no fruit, just sticky congealed blood."

Zhao Yun watched her slice open their palms and slap their hands together in a firm handshake. "Your people are so primitive and unrefined."

"I know, so give me a new name that doesn't sound like I'm hacking up a hairball."

"I happen to like that about you. It's who you are." Chao snapped. "I don't want you hiding that! So stop trying to change your name and stop straightening your hair."

"Zilong, you need to kick the crap out of him for trying to order me around."

"Not before I go brag to Zhang Fei....I'll talk to you later little sister."

"God, we need to find him a woman." Cal shook her head. "He's becoming more unstable."

"Why is Zhao Yun bleeding?" Liu Bei asked as he walked up.

"Because you made him feel left out in your little exclusive 'oath brothers' club." Shang pulled on her husband's pant leg to force him to sit next to her.

"I don't understand why he's bleeding though."

"Little taste of Rome." Zhou Tai smiled. These people were psychotic, but fun.

"Oh." Bei sighed.

"So Tai," Sun Shang Xiang grinned mischievously. "You going to wear anything special for your wedding?"

"You mean clothes?" Tai said knowing where she was going with her little comment.

"Or lack there of." Shang smiled at Ying. "Did he tell you that he saved Quan stark naked?"

"No..."Ying pouted. "Why wouldn't you tell me that?"

"Your imagination didn't need another scenario." Tai squeezed her shoulder.

"Naked huh?" Cal leaned back into her tree and smirked. "Hell, I guess I'd strip for the emperor's sake. Might not help much, when this vests comes off my tits don't look so big."

"Well...if it came down to it." Yue Ying shrugged and smiled as Liu Bei's face began to turn pink. "For the glory of Shu right? I mean Tong can't be the only strategist taking off his clothes for the empire."

"Now, Shang." Cal smiled. "You'd stop the enemy in their tracks."

"You think?" Shang sat up and smiled with the complement. "Really?"

"Sure. Isn't that right Xuande?" Cal grinned.

"Yes...but please don't take off your clothes for anyone but me." Bei hated when the girls did this to him.

"Really?" Shang jumped up. "What do you think Tai?"

"That question is not only going to get me in trouble with your husband...but also my fiancé. I pass."

"Now, I do believe that I have a date with the great and honorable Zhao Yun." Cal stood up and bowed.

"Nice work general." Liu Bei growled as Shang ran over to ask Wei Yan and Huang Zhong their opinions.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"So what's wrong with you?" Cal snapped Zhao Yun's little gold armband and smiled warmly.

"Nothing's wrong with me I just thought you wanted family."

"Mmm...you're lonely." Cal frowned.

"Am I doing something wrong? I have all these women following me everywhere, yet I can't seem to find one I like." Yun toyed with the Fierce Dragon and looked down at the grass.

"Maybe Yue Ying has the right idea. Maybe you are gay."

Yun wrapped his arm around her neck and squeezed. "Not funny."

"So defensive..." Cal looked into his warm chocolate eyes and saw a degree of worry. "Are you serious about this?"

"No, I so often complain about things that don't bother me."

"You honestly think you're going to be alone forever?"

"Up until recently you felt the same way."

"Well because I am different. You are...well you. Good god you have women clawing your clothes off man! What is the big deal?"

"Even after you married Lu Bu...you still felt like you were destined to be alone."

"It was a business deal, nothing more. One of us was going to end up dead...and he was playing my game." Cal narrowed her eyes. "But I never left you...right? Now I am going to leave with Chao eventually. Ditch you like Liu Bei did."

"I want you to be happy."

"I don't want to leave you either." She frowned. "Xiliang is really far away." It was very true, since the beginning they had found common ground and they become closer as the years past. Finally she had a friend that understood her, but it was much more. He looked out for her and she loved that feeling. Knowing that someone was trying to protect her from herself somehow made it seem like she was a worthwhile person.

"Yeah and I'll be in Cheng Du. Guan Yu, Zhang Fei, Liu Bei, Sun Shang Xiang, You, Chao and Yue Ying will all be off with their families. Pang Tong will never leave his harem and Wei Yan and Huang Zhong will go off on their cross-country hunting expeditions. Leaving me, by myself, to wonder what it's really like to be happy with someone."

"So..." Cal stretched out across his lap. "Were we supposed to go off on some crazy adventure? You helping damsels in distress me killing the offender with a quick slice to the jugular?"

"I don't know. I just pictured us having more time."

"I'm taking your new friend away too. I'm such a bitch."

"I really am happy for you both."

"Zilong, you're a really good man. There's a woman out there waiting for you." Cal smirked. "Or a very beautiful man."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Hey whelp!" Huang Zhong shouted over the heads of the crowd in the marketplace of Yi Ling. "Over this way."

Wei Yan frowned and hoisted Lu Xi onto his shoulders before pushing through the hordes of people. The coming battle had many citizens nervous and they were stocking up on food. As if that was going to do any good. Zhong had insisted that he knew a woman here that had a fruit stand and he could probably strike a deal with her. Yan was babysitting little Xi anyhow, so it wasn't like he really cared where they were doing it. As he moved towards the grinning old man Xi screamed and smacked him on the head. Stupid kid was just as violent as his parents, but he adored him anyway. "Where?"

"Ummm...I think it was down here somewhere?" Zhong kept moving until he saw the small house and the produce cart outside. "There it is..."

Yan followed him over and looked at the young woman attending to the mobile shop. She was a very average looking woman, black hair, brown eyes about 5' 4" and a very definitive look on her face that gave him the feeling that she had lived through a lot and really didn't take shit from anyone. If Zhong knew this girl from a while back he's be surprised, she just didn't seem to be his type. Way too young. "Her?"

"No..." Zhong smiled charmingly at the young lady and looked around. "Um..is there a delightful woman by the name of Kwan Lin that lives around here?"

Yan rolled his eyes. He took a closer look at the woman who was looking them both over and debating whether she really wanted to divulge any information. Something was oddly familiar about her face.

"Yeah, who's asking?"

"An old friend."

"Mother!" the woman shouted without taking her eyes off the pair. Weird visitors for her mother, but her curiosity always got the better of her.

"What is it Jun?" Kwan Lin shuffled out of the residence and saw Huang Zhong. Her quizzically expression quickly turned into a scowl.

"Lin! You look great...how many years has it been now?" Zhong gave her a warm smile.

"Jun, how old are you?"

"Twenty six." Jun answered slowly.

"Well I'd say I haven't seen you in damn near twenty six years plus nine months." Lin replied.

All the four people could hear, despite the annoying sound of the busy marketplace, was Lu Xi's gurgles and squawks. Yan put the child down on the ground and he instantly fell to his knees and began running his hands through the sand of the street. Yan figured the kid would be fine; a little dirt never hurt anyone. So if what this woman was telling the truth then....

"Oh that's just wonderful." Kwan Jun threw her hands up. "As a child when I though about the moment when I finally meet my father I never thought it would be this refined. Thanks mother."

"You mean??" Zhong looked over at Jun and back at Lin.

"Yeah, Hansheng. You're a proud father of a fruit saleswoman."

"Uhh...."

"So who's he?" Jun pointed to Wei Yan. "Is he your son or your wife?"

Yan chuckled. For some reason the people of this region thought that Zhong and Yan were a couple and Xi was their child. It was a very disgusting but amusing thought and he really didn't care what people said anyhow. He never cared. "Friend."

"So that kid is?"

"Lu Xi." Wei Yan answered and the child screeched when he heard his name. "Friend's."

"You really talk a lot don't you?"

"Hmmmm..."

"Well pick that brat up out of the road and bring him inside. I think we're all going to have story time and find out all about the origins of Kwan Jun." Jun looked at her parents. "Right?"

"Uhhhh..." Zhong looked over at his daughter. "Hi."

"Hello. Who are you?" Jun asked.

"Huang Zhong."

"Great. Nice to meet you, please don't get my mother knocked up again." Jun waved to Wei Yan. "Okay pal, inside."

Yan scooped Xi up in his arm and pulled Zhong inside with him. "Nice ...going."

"Well you might as well tell us what you've been up to Zhong." Lin followed them and reentered her house.

"Nice hat." Jun shook her head. One damned thing after another. Good god, could her family get any more weird?

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Xuande ?"

"Yes dear." Liu Bei continued to write down strategy proposals for the war council being held the next day. He had scrolls and maps strewn all over the table and was trying to see some sort of pattern in the tactics employed by Sima Yi in previous battles. Other than being wary of women wearing pink, he couldn't read into the man's plans at all. It bothered him. What bothered him more was Cal's first impression of the man. "_He's good. We need to watch him."_ Followed promptly by,_"Much more likeable than Kongming or Zhou Yu. He's really good."_ It was all they knew about him, and it was driving him crazy.

"You're not a strategist honey." Sun Shang Xiang walked up behind him and pulled his hair up into a ponytail. With a small strand of ribbon she tied it and smiled. Suppressing a smile she pressed her naked breasts into her husband's neck.

Bei stopped everything and let his eyes drift down to the two rather large perky breasts that now sat upon his shoulders. Certainly no burden ever felt that good. He gulped and gave one last glance at his paperwork before dropping his pen.

Shang giggled as he toyed with her nipples and huskily whispered, "I don't have the herbal remedy equipped."

Bei's mind was so clouded with desire he hardly understood the implications of that sentence. Within a minute the realization hit him like an arbalest volley. "You mean..."

"I think I'm ovulating...at least according to that calendar Tong gave me."

"Really?"

"Yeah, and the more we do it....the better our chances are." Shang ran the backs of her hands down his flushed cheeks. How adorable he was. Still embarrassed by talking about sex with his wife....such a cutie.

"Well...I suppose I have done enough for the country today." _Not to mention I've been staring at your pornographic trading card for half the day. Thank god I took that away from Zhang Fei._

"Yes...now it's time to service me." She laughed knowing that any dirty talk only turned him a deeper shade of red. With a practiced spin she moved from behind his chair onto his lap in a mere two steps. "I wish you would wear your silk robe more...I like taking that off better."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

AN: Ugh, this chapter took me forever. I had to make some kind of transitionary chapter to launch into the next array of mishaps that is going to plague the three kingdoms, so I apologize if this isn't the best piece of work I have put out. Kwan Jun is an OC created for Lacitar13, I just had to give Wei Yan someone that adored him. The man needs a break. She is a joint effort, and I like her so she's officially Wei Yan's woman in each of my fics now.

On to the reviews:

**Abbasabu: **I know, bad author. I got distracted by my other fics, my crappy homepage and pretty much anything that wasn't this fic. I have a terrible tendency to do that when I'm excited about the segment that is almost three chapters away. Doesn't make sense, if I wrote the dumb things I could get there faster...oh well. No, I'm not busy with school haven't been in a while. (wasn't really when I was there anyhow. ;-)), but life is sure being pushy and getting in the way of my writing. Cat breaking his ankle, brake lines corroding and exploding (really exciting to replace your brake lines in a home depot parking lot...really.), trying to put in a new floor before winter, some identity theft issues

..okay I'm rambling. Anyhow, I'm glad everyone's happy with the way this is going, because around chapter 20 the reviews began to alter the course of the story a bit. When this thing is all finished, I'm going to have to type up all those unused scenarios. You'd be amazed at how evil I really am.;-)

**Turmoil911**: Am I that transparent? I have been angling for a joint adventure into Nanman territory, although it won't happen for a little while. People need to go off and start some families before it's too late, but I thought it would be humorous to stick all those people into that stupid level. (Definitely going with the DW3 Nanman though.) So much running around, I can have a ball having generals crossing each others paths. May even let Zhu Rong kidnap a male general so she can rape him. Seriously, Kessen II alluded to that scenario. Watch out Liu Bei she's grabby! Oh and I know I killed Xiahou Yuan at the wrong battle...I was being lazy. Plus I was adhering too close to the canon story and I had shaken things up enough that I needed to start warping history a bit.

**SexieVixen: **I may still Shang wail on her brother. It would just be too much fun. I would have to let Zhou Tai and Yue Ying depart for their honeymoon first. Leave Quan open to an attack. But you're going to put Quan in some deep shit yourself..aren't you?

**Lady of the Moon and Stars: **Welcome aboard! Noticed in your profile you're on the Academic Team. I used to be involved in that in HS, but I haven't run into anyone else who even heard of that activity since. Anyhow, may the retention of useless knowledge bring you many victories. ;-)

Hopefully this chapter wasn't too bad. I was reluctant to make Cal and Zhao Yun sworn siblings, but it struck me as funny. Poor guy must have felt horrible running with the boys in the early days. "We are the virtuous oath brothers...oh and Zhao Yun." But he's lonely and he needs someone to protect plus it ensures he stays in contact with them once they go to XiLiang. I need to shut up now...and go write another chapter for Lunar Spear. Sorry about the rant!


	38. Skirmishes

Chapter 38

Skirmishes

Zhang Fei looked up as the Shu generals were eating breakfast and spotted a man approaching. With a chuckle he announced, "Zilong, your date's here."

Zhao Yun knew he shouldn't give in, but he couldn't resist. As he looked up he saw the familiar image of an agitated Zhou Yu striding towards them, "Cal, defend my honor please."

Cal looked up and saw the arrogant jackass approaching. "Think of the possibilities, you can braid each others hair."

"I will disown you." Yun looked into her eyes.

"But what will Shu do without the Stray Siblings?" Fei smiled, man he was on a roll.

"Stray Siblings?" Ma Chao looked up and directed his question to Guan Yu.

"Well…they both found their way to us unemployed…" Yu looked down at his food when the two officers in question gave him a nasty glare.

"You've been calling us that behind our backs for how long?" Cal asked.

"It was more of an inside joke…" Liu Bei cleared his throat and stood. Hopefully it would end the discussion he didn't want to have. "Good Morning Lord Zhou. How may we help you this fine morning?"

"I have a task for your little friend." Zhou Yu looked at Cal.

"You want me to kick you in the nuts again?" Cal smiled at him and watched his face turn red.

"This is a private matter." He turned and stormed off.

"He must have seen my pretty watercolor picture." Cal patted Zhao Yun's back and followed the pissy Wu strategist.

"Tell me she didn't date him too." Ma Chao watched as she walked up to the man.

"No they don't like each other much. They do have a healthy respect for each other, but it stops there." Guan Yu informed the nervous general. Poor kid, he missed out on the good years. "Um, I know this isn't any of my business…but perhaps you should ask her about her past. You know since you are completely clueless about most of this."

"Mmmm!" Yun mumbled with a mouthful of food. "She grabbed Tai's ass!"

Zhou Tai kept his eyes on Zhou Yu, "Very rough about it too."

Yue Ying tapped her fingers on the table angrily, "Yes she did take advantage of you didn't she."

Chao shifted uncomfortably. Ying had a very bizarre look in her eyes. "What?"

"Nothing." Ying smiled to herself and resumed eating.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Lu Meng sat alone on the beach perched upon a rock. He could see the Shu encampment across the river and wondered how long it would be before they confronted him about his mistake. It was stupid, he knew Guan Yu would never defect...but he knew he couldn't just let them sit in Jingzhou. Something had to be done and without Zhou Yu the responsibility fell on his shoulders. That would never happen again, he made sure of that. Zhou Yu had ripped into him recently about it, the strategist's anger finally had reached a boiling point and Meng just let him. He deserved it after all, he deserved worse. If there was only a way to make it up to them he would. Just so he wouldn't have to see Shang Xiang look at him like that…like he was a traitor. Yes, her allegiance was the one that had changed, but one time they had been close and she trusted him. No more, that was for certain.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"If you're looking to defect, we're not interested." Cal looked up at his sneer.

"This is a more…discrete matter. Something I would like to think you will keep quiet about."

"Why are you asking me then?"

Zhou Yu huffed and crossed his arms. "First, you are supposed to be the one who specializes in these disdainful procedures…and you owe me."

"I don't owe you shit."

"You kicked me in the balls."

"And I apologized." Cal put her hands on her hips and glared at him.

"Not good enough. Besides, I'm sure you'll enjoy this."

"Fine. What do you want?"

"Get Da Qiao away from me and my wife and into someone else's bed."

Cal looked over at the table as Zhou Tai burst into laughter. She looked back at Zhou Yu who began to grind his teeth. "Oh, by the way. Tai slept over."

Zhou Yu gave the pirate a cold glare, but he knew the man wouldn't share the valuable information. He wasn't that kind of man. The lip-reading was more of an amusement now, its original purpose long gone along with his former profession. "Well?"

"What is your problem with her?"

"She's in my bed, she's in my study, she's taking away any private time I have with my wife. I need her to find someone else to cry on and screw before I kill her." Yu looked back at the Shu generals who were beginning to stare at them. "What the hell are they looking at now?"

"They're probably just jealous because I'm talking with the prettiest girl here." Cal began to laugh but he kicked her in the shin and she fell over.

"Are you going to take care of it?"

Cal held her leg as Chao got up and began to come to her rescue. "Oh now you've done it."

"You really got over your husband quickly." Zhou Yu folded his arms and looked to the sky. These damned Shu people were so unprofessional.

"Why the hell are you kicking my fiancé?" Chao demanded as he bent down to pick up his woman.

"Oh save me my dashing general!"

Zhou Yu grumbled as the Roman girl clung to her defender. Xiao better be on him like that tonight or else. "Do we have an agreement?"

"Yeah. I have the perfect man for the job."

"Excellent."

"Did I ever tell you he called me a cow?" Cal looked up at Chao and fluttered her eyelashes.

"Goodbye, generals." Zhou Yu turned and strode off towards his horse.

"Wait!" Cal suddenly remembered something. She limped after the fleeing strategist and grabbed his arm. "I almost forgot, you have a spy."

"Unless you have a name, you're not telling me anything I don't know."

"Whoever it is has been with you a long time." Cal thought about it. "Cao Cao knew about our duel and that was way before all of this."

"That narrows it down."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Shang Xiang stared at her food and frowned. It looked so good, but she couldn't even stomach the thought of eating it. What the hell was wrong with her? She looked over at Tai and Ying, "So do you ask Quan?"

"Later." Tai said. Discussing his wedding with his lord was not on his list of enjoyable activities for the day.

"Did Chao say anything yet?" Ying queried, directing her question at Liu Bei.

"Not a thing." Liu Bei shook his head.

"I bet he will be within the hour." Fei tossed a coin across the table.

"No this afternoon…he's got to talk about her boyfriends first." Guan Yu slapped a coin down.

"After Ying gets hitched, she'll be humping his leg during Quan's boring ass speech." Shang plucked a coin out of cleavage prompting Liu Bei to lean over and inspect the crevasse for other stashed items.

"Mid afternoon." Zhao Yun put his coin down. "They have yet to argue."  
"At dinner." Pang Tong smiled. "Food makes her think."

"After I say Cao Cao." Huang Zhong winked and put his coin down. "Lord Ma and his over-protective problems. He'll want her attached to his name before the evil guy takes another family member away."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Cal…darling, do you want to go for a ride?" Chao looked over at her and couldn't help but worry. She had become distant again, something he knew to be worried about. Plus there was all this information he was coming across about her pre-Tong Gate experiences in China.

"Sure…something wrong?" She looked up into his eyes and saw his brooding look. He was pondering and more than likely she was going to have to talk about something she had no desire to discuss.

"I just haven't spent much time with you since we got back…I thought it would be nice."

"Go on!" Zhao Yun smacked her arm. "Take the hint already."

Cal let her future husband lift her off her feet and let him lead her away. "So what's really wrong?"

"I think we need to sort some things out…that's all."

"If you're changing your mind…I'll understand."

"No, never. I just need to know about what's happened to you since you got here. I need to know that."

"Honey, that could very well take up a large portion of a three kingdoms novel. I'd guess almost fifty chapters.."

"Just humor me. Okay?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I have to insist that I perform the service." Sun Quan pressed his ring, bearing the Sun family crest, into the warm wax. He was trying to finish up some paperwork: miscellaneous promotions, demotions, executions, before he had his discussion with Zhou Yu. The Wu ruler hated being alone with the crafty strategist, he always used big words and no matter what Quan always felt like he was being manipulated.

Zhou Tai nodded, "I would have it no other way sir." Tai figured as bitchy as his lord was, it was best to give his ego a boost.

"And where will your new wife reside after we part ways?"

"That is up to Lord Liu Bei, my lord." Yue Ying used her sweetest most charming voice to try and help Tai's ass kissing effort.

"And he does not object to the wedding being so soon, or even the fact that he is not doing it?" Quan looked up as he asked the question. He tried to give her a glare that would make her look away, but in the end it was him that could not hold her gaze.

"He is actually relieved, my lord, he probably has a wedding to see over himself." Ying rubbed her foot up Tai's calf.

"Then we shall make plans for a feast tonight and you will be wed." Quan shuffled some scrolls around and tried to hide his irritation. Out of all the women, Tai had to pick her? Another brain in Jian Ye to mock him…

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Wei Yan followed Huang Zhong as he hurried through the empty marketplace towards the Kwan home. Lu Xi giggled and screeched as he held him under his arm. The poor kid's parents were in a heated discussion about his mom's past and the child didn't need to be around for that. He heard Zhong's cheery voice and knew that the old flame didn't evacuate.

"Lin, you look stunning!"

"What do you want?"

"Would you care to join me for a walk?"

"Get your ass in here and help me pack you deadbeat."

Yan smiled to himself, at least Zhong found a good match. He looked up at Kwan Jun darted down the alley. "Hello."

"You're leaving them alone together? Look what happened last time." She looked down at Lu Xi. "Does that kid actually have a mother?"

Lu Xi looked up at the lady and screamed, "SNARF!"

"She's…..busy."

"Well when he calls you mama, don't be surprised."

Wei Yan smiled as she held the door open for him. As they entered the small cottage he saw his friend dodging clothing. _I guess he is helping her pack_.

"Lordy woman! How many clothes do you need?" Zhong shook his head.

"I could use some nice ones, that's for certain. Don't want to be buried in a rag."

Kwan Jun rolled her eyes. Damn old people and their need to talk about funerals. She moved into the kitchen and grabbed a mango for the child. Quickly cutting it in half she returned to the main room and handed the halved fruit to the little boy. "It's good for him. Sweet, lots of vitamins and gooey."

Wei Yan put the boy down on the floor so he could smash the fruit onto himself in peace. "Thank you."

"Is he really serious about taking her along? I mean, there is more than likely a good reason he didn't stick around the first time. I know my mother and she can be a serious pain in the ass."

Wei Yan shrugged. "His…funeral."

"Got that right."

Xxxxxxxxx

"And that is the story." Cal finished and looked at Chao's face. He was just adorable when he was agitated.

"Now tell me what Cao Cao did to you."

Cal almost choked on her drool. "What?"

Chao stood up from the squat that he was in and looked down at her. "You have to tell me. That is no longer your burden to carry alone."

Cal tried to laugh, but it came across nervous and panicked. "Let's just forget it…"

"No, you will tell me."

Cal looked down at the ground and suddenly realized that she was sitting in his shadow. The combination of the lack of sun to warm her and his stern tone made her shiver. She glanced up at his face and caved, he could be very intimidating when he wanted to be. Far worse than Lu Bu in her opinion. "Well…."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Zhang Fei stomped down the trashy street and looked for the familiar phallic symbol that designated a whorehouse. He finally found one and burst into it without even a knock. "HELLO!!!"

"No need to yell sir. We are without morals, not hearing." A portly woman stood and approached him.

"I need to buy a concubine, you got any for sale?" Fei looked around and noticed some interesting portraits on the wall. Before he could determine who they resembled, the woman replied.

"Yes, several. What would you like her to perform?"

"Not for me, for a friend. She just needs to have the right parts and be cheap." Fei thought about it. Zhao Yun wasn't really that good of a friend. "Really cheap."

"I have an older woman, some problems though…"

"Is she cheap?"

"Yes. But she's fairly ugly, has crabs, was the only whore in a leper colony for twenty years and has lost a few teeth." The madam began to fiddle with the ledger; she was never going to be able to get that stupid woman off her hands…

"Sounds perfect. How much?"

"Do you have a meatbun?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"I'll kill him…right now."

"I knew you were going to do this! That's why I never wanted to tell you!" Cal jumped up.

"How can I let that…injustice go unpunished? I told you I'd protect you and it's going to start with the death of Cao Cao!" Ma Chao grabbed his spear and helmet.

"He will die, but not now! This is just plain damned stupid."

"No one can get away with doing that, especially not to you."

"I'm not some vulnerable lady that needs to be protected from the evils of the world, Ma Mengqi!" Cal slammed her fist into his breastplate. "So get that fantasy notion out of your thick head!"

"You are going to be my wife, that makes it my problem."

"It won't undo the past, so what the hell is the point?"

"The point is that you are going to be starting a new life and that means all of your old…issues need to die." Chao snapped and slammed his helmet on his head. Women were always so damned stubborn.

"I already have started a new life and it doesn't matter who is dead or alive…I've changed." Cal watched him turned and untie Lotus from the tree branch she was tethered to. "Or do you need to do this so that you can make me into the lady you were supposed to marry? The one thing I can never be?"

"That's bullshit."

"Is it? I've always been able to take care of myself, but you always insisted that I lean on you for support. Something that was hard and never felt right. I never realized you were asking me to act like everyone else….until now."

"What?" Chao looked back at her with one foot in the stirrup.

"You heard me. You ride out of camp to attack Cao Cao and it is only going to be for you. To fulfill some ridiculous need to prove to everyone that I'm your woman and you're going to do right by me. Well that's not going to happen. I don't need you to shelter me, I need you to love me and help me raise my kid. If you try to make me into something proper we're both going to end up miserable. I've changed as much as I can, this is what you're marrying Chao. Right here in front of you, no more adjustments."

"I never tried to change you. I've only tried to help you become what you wanted."

"I was trying to change to be what you needed and now I'm hating myself. I don't know who I am or what I'm supposed to do. I kill people Chao, that's what I want to do. Everything that has happened…that's who I am. You can't erase things that have already made an influence."

"So now I'm the enemy?" Chao put his foot back down on the ground and stared at her.

"I won't let you ride out of here so you can die for a worthless cause."

"I won't die! I can easily…"

"Then I won't marry you. Ever. You make your decision. Me or him, I am too selfish to share you."

"This isn't about revenge or making you look better to the public, this is about a wrong that must be righted!"

"No this is about you and me." Cal watched his face flush. "You will pick your obsession right now."

Chao closed his eyes trying to calm himself down. What would it achieve if he did kill Cao Cao, but lost her? "Fine. I won't go. But we're getting married today. I can't take any more of your threats."

Cal watched him reopen his eyes and the calmer Chao that she loved looked back at her. "Alright, it's about damned time I get to screw you."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Let's ditch these two and go get something to eat." Kwan Jun threw up her hands as her mother lectured Huang Zhong on folding methods.

"Fish?"

"Sure."

Wei Yan slung Lu Xi over his shoulder and let the kid continue to gnaw on the mango. Together they went outside into the vacant street and began to move towards the river. He stopped when he caught sight of Ma Chao searching the market. The mounted warrior noticed him and happily cantered over. "Hmmm"

"Who's this?" Jun asked.

"Xi's… new… dad."

"Oh so he does have parents does he?

"Wei Yan!" Chao leapt out of the saddle. "I've been looking all over for you. I'm going to take care of Xi for the afternoon."

Wei Yan raised an eyebrow, Chao wasn't exactly the best person to be taking care of a child. At least not one of the human variety. "Here…" He held out the now mango covered toddler and watched Chao hold him like hissing cat.

"Hold the kid, honey, like this." Kwan Jun nestled the gurgling Lu Xi in Chao's arm and watched the child shove his fingers into the mango. "Now we can let you leave with him."

Chao looked at the kid and wondered how much more he would have to learn. After the small argument with Cal, they went to find Liu Bei so they could order him to marry them that day. Liu Bei agreed, after accusing them both of being rude, and Chao had offered to go get Xi ready for the ceremony. He needed to spend time with him anyway, after tonight the kid was going to be his son. His thoughts were interrupted by Xi trying to feed him mango. "No Xi, don't…."

Wei Yan laughed as the child smashed a chunk of fruit into Ma Chao's face, smearing mango juice all over the horse soldier. "Need…bath..too."

"I can handle that." Chao said, hoping that it was as easy as it sounded. He winced as Xi laughed and wiped mango skin down his face. Yep, this was Lu Bu's kid alright. "Cal and I are getting married tonight."

"We…all…knew…that." Yan grinned. The two of them would never be able to hold out another day, the allure os sex was too much for them. They had all placed bets on the amount of time it would take for them to tell Liu Bei he had to marry them.

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

Pang Tong watched the small bowl of flammables explode and shower shards of clay everywhere. Gan Ning, who had ignored the warnings, hopped around on one foot as one of the pieces of clay shrapnel imbedded itself in his foot. Some people just had to learn the hard way.

Lu Xun coughed and wiped away some of the soot that had blown into his face. The mixture had to be right by tonight or the fire attack wouldn't be a success. "I don't know what I'm missing!"

"You got a piece in Gan Ning." Pang Tong smiled at the pun. How irritating the ex-pirate's war cries could be.

"Oh…sorry." Lu Xun watched the tattooed general grumble and throw the shard away.

"Sorry! So much for helping, I'm going back to drinking."

"Hi boys." Cal pulled Red Hare to a halt and looked down at the still flaming table.

"Aren't you at all concerned about your horse?" Pang Tong asked knowing her attachment to the little Arabian thing and she just looked out of place on Red Hare.

"Ares is fine." Cal smiled. "I'll get him back in the next battle."

"What an odd name for a horse." Lu Xun tapped his fingers on the table thinking about his next attempt.

"War god."

"Hmmm….you do have an interesting sounding language." Xun commented absent mindedly. Where was that flint….

"Actually it's Greek, the Roman name is Mars. But everyone in the country names their pets after the same people. Scream Mars and a pack of varying critters come running. No I went with the Greek name, same god less common name." Cal wondered how her little horse was doing but she knew she didn't have to worry, not with Cao Ren watching out for him. Ren had a soft-heart and took many strays in, something everyone admired about him.

"That's interesting." Xun mumbled she was such an odd girl and he never really liked her all that much. How obvious did he have to be to make her move along? "You don't happen to know anything about fire do you?"

"Greek fire." Cal scratched Red Hare's mane and noticed the two strategists staring at her.

"The same Greek fire that is rumored to burn underwater?" Tong queried.

"And be a highly regarded secret." Xun said skeptically.

"Kid, you'd be amazed at how many people talk in their sleep. I don't know the appropriate mixture but the ingredients are sulfur, magnesium, naphtha and quicklime." Cal watched Tong and Xun begin to dig in some crates, completely ignoring her. "Hmpf. Well I'll be getting along then."

"MAGNESIUM!" Xun chuckled. "I can't believe we overlooked that!"

"I know I have a grater in here somewhere, we'll need it in flakes if this is going to work." Tong smiled back.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"They are obviously allied now." Zhang He looked back at Sima Yi still sitting on his horse.

"Yes."

"I suppose you're going to advise retreat?" Zhang He let a fuzzy caterpillar crawl along his claws. They were such ugly, but interesting creatures.

"Yes. We are all in need of replenishment and new recruits. I do not feel confident about facing another allied force, even if Shu is demoralized by the loss of their strategist and most famous warrior. Wu has been playing it safe ever since the loss of Sun Ce, they are strong. We return to Xu Chang and release some of our men, then heavily recruit from the areas of Poyang and Ping Yuan. We will attack them when we are ready, I will not allow us to be lured into a trap." Sima Yi fanned himself.

"I agree." Zhang He looked down at the camp and let the caterpillar inch off his weapon and on to a willow tree.

"It is however an appropriate time to put our long-term planning into action."

"Then we're going to go visit Liu Chan are we?" Zhang He laughed.

"Yes let's see how very gullible the brat is." Sima Yi urged his horse, a vibrant red stallion named Tyrant, down the hill.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Wei Yan knelt next to the small fire in nothing more than his ragged loincloth. The fish he had caught was turning out marvelously and he was dying to see if it tasted as good as it looked.

Kwan Jun's eyes never left the warriors muscled thighs. He had gone fishing, as promised, but his version of fishing was much more interactive than any she had previously seen. Using his double halberd, he waded into the river and speared a fish. Even not knowing much about weapons, she recognized it as a spectacular feat with such a broad headed blade. The best part of the excursion was the still soaked loincloth that was now sticking to his legs. Everything else was drying in a neat pile on the grass, except for that green, tattered, threadbare loincloth.

Yan flipped the fish over and sprinkled some more seasoning on it, a novelty that he always had with him. There was no telling when Zhong would show up at his tent-flap and have an urge to hunt. To the world, Wei Yan looked like a savage, but his palate was more refined than most. He preferred his delicacies, like snakefish, and his special seasoning salt to anything the cooks could drum up. This one was going to turn out well, which pleased him immensely.

"So what's with the mask?" Jun asked as he stretched and flexed his abdominal muscles. Briefly she caught a glimpse of something under the loincloth as he shifted. Her eyebrows involuntarily raised, _DAMN!_

"Had…surgery." Yan hated to tell anyone about his reasoning behind the mask. It was embarrassing, but also dangerous. When he was in his early twenties, he had gone off to fight some bandits and ended up getting cracked in the head with a blacksmith's mallet. It was a stupid mistake, something he paid dearly for….but he did walk away with his life. The blunt force had immediately put him in a coma; the doctor later informed him that the swelling had begun to put pressure on his brain.

Luckily, he was working for a Lord who was also a man of medicine. He was a poorer lord, but the income from the practice usually kept his family fed and financed the small units that protected the village from bandits. The man immediately saw an opportunity to 'practice' his trade and attempted brain surgery. It was a risky venture, but Lord Fa was curious about the procedure and Wei Yan would surely die if he didn't do it. That was the line they had fed him after he had awoken and discovered a hole in his forehead. The reality was that Wei Yan was just a simple man, no more than a private in the unit, and he was fair game. No family, no value, just a future cadaver and Lord Fa jumped on the opportunity to try his hand at something that could make him famous.

Miraculously it worked and the hole allowed the pressure to release and the haze of the coma soon lifted. The drawbacks to his second chance were that he had a soft spot on his head where the skull had been chiseled away and any minor hit would kill him instantly and he lost his ability to speak and make coherent sentences. Something about the brain being squished and damaged. Unable to talk well, the men soon began to mock him and call him a caveman. Furious he hacked them to pieces and ran, only to be hunted for the murder like a man-eating tiger. He couldn't go into towns, since he couldn't be understood and his face was on wanted posters, and he was left with only one choice: to live in the wild. Knowing that he was on borrowed time if he didn't find a helmet he began to search in the one place he knew no one would be able to accost him: the graveyard.

Four days of grave robbing turned up very little, and he could only find parts of armor that had not rusted away after being buried with its pervious owner. He still wore these pieces today; the reason not a single item on his person matched the others: two different gaiters and bracers, a breastplate too small for his lengthy torso, a bizarre shoulder plate with a wing and the belt off of a nobleman's corpse. Then there was his favorite, the loincloth that used to be a death shroud. After all that searching he never did find a helmet, but he did have another headpiece at his disposal: an actual skull and a fat one at that. The previous owner must have been as big as Dong Zhuo to have a head like that, but who was complaining? Borrowing a saw out of a barn, he sawed it in half and then swiped an old stirrup leather to attach it to his own head. It was perfect.

Over the years he had added to it to make it less obvious that it was indeed genuine human bone, the most important part being the nose. Hand crafted out of a piece of ivory from a Nanman Elephant, the nose fit snuggly into the skull and prevented the mask from rubbing his nose raw. And it blended in perfectly replacing the original cartilage, it even yellowed at the same rate as the bone. Absorbed in his thoughts he almost forgot about the fish. "Lunch……ready."

AN: I know this chapter took too damned long, sorry. This is going to be a three-parter, I have too many couples that are going to be getting together that it's going to take me forever. Hope you all like modified sex scenes.;-)

Here's my shameless plug for our new message board, Way of Musou. Check out my profile for the url, and take a look-we're got fanart, fanfics, round robins, requests, general ramblings about things vaguely related to DW, and much more! Hopefully if we continue to grow and there is enough interest we'll look into starting our own fanfiction site exclusively for DW fics. If anyone is good with web design, let us know. I have no patience and my experience with any programming language is limited to Basic. (Although I bet I can still draw ugly things in ASCII!)


	39. Confession

Chapter 39

Confession

"I finally found you!"

Yue Ying looked up from her task of brushing Zhou Tai's hair. She loved his hair, so silky and smooth, quite unlike Kongmings's who was notorious for his greasy scalp. "Hello Cal, miss me that much?"

Zhou Tai cracked a smile as he looked up at the girl. "Bored with the new husband already? And you haven't even been married yet…tsk tsk…"

"He's taking care of my kid. I wanted to ask Ying something." Cal looked around nervously. It wasn't something she normally did; of all the people in Shu she liked sharing secrets with Zhao Yun. The girls never really discussed matters.

"Ah." Ying started rubbing Tai's scalp. Everything about him was sexy. "Considering what we have in common…I bet this is about our dead husbands."

"You feel guilty?" Cal asked quietly.

"Not in the least. That wasn't the man I married….that was a traitor." Ying said confidently.

"But I married a traitor…what's my excuse?" Cal sighed and shook her head.

"You married him to prevent him from killing Liu Bei, which you did." Ying began fingering his neck vertebrae. Damn, he was so hot.

"Yeah." Cal smiled. "I'll see you in an hour then."

"Are you even going to be at our wedding?" Ying smirked. "Or are you going to sneak off and rape Chao?"

"Me? Miss Sun Quan's speech?" Cal grinned.

* * *

"Son, come here. Your mother and I have something to tell you." Liu Bei smiled and led his young boy over to where Shang Xiang was looking ill.

"She's not my mom. Mom's dead." Chan said nastily.

Shang resisted the urge to give the kid the finger and instead leaned her head back and looked at the sky. What the hell was she thinking! This was horrible!

"Well, I hope you can grow to think of her like your mother...especially with a new brother or sister on the way." Bei's smile couldn't be hidden; hell he knew he was glowing. Shang had been vomiting like crazy and began to complain about other irritations. It sounded all extremely familiar and he couldn't help but think of when Cal was pregnant. Then it hit him…..then she hit him. He knew better than to announce something so shocking to his wife without armor on.

"Oh." Chan looked away. So he was being replaced, just like Master Jiang had predicted.

* * *

Lu Xi looked at the water that he was descending into and looked up at his abductor and sniffled. When the pitiful look didn't work he began to scream.

Ma Chao held the flailing child out and tried to dunk him in the rice vat, serving as a bathtub. Lotus came over to investigate but kept her distance, there were some matters that were better left in the able hands of her master. To her dismay, Chao gave into the screams and put the child down at her feet.

Chao couldn't believe how difficult it was to bathe a small child. The boy struggled and screamed every time he neared water. Relying on his experience with horses, he had tried to blindfold the kid and get him over his fears that way. It had the reverse effect of what he intended and the boy fought him more. Scratching his head, he pondered his next approach. He was running out of ideas and running to Liu Bei for help wasn't an available option. He needed to prove that he could handle his future son for more than twenty minutes.

Lotus flinched as the child began mouthing her fetlock. She craned her neck to lick him and help get this process moving, but instead the boy bit her. She whinnied and snorted. _Ouch, little human-foal. Why must you bite?_

Chao scooped Xi up and realized he himself was covered in mango goo_. Might as well be efficient._ "Let's go to the river Xi, and then we can both take a bath."

Xi gurgled and squawked, clutching the sticky tunic that was around his mom's annoying friend. He looked around for his favorite people and neither Yanie or Bei-Bei was near. He chose to suck his thumb instead and hoped this fool would be done playing games soon.

* * *

"Well what are we doing about the feast?' Sun Quan sat regally at the head of the table and looked to his two advisors. He had given Zhou Yu his job back after the previous day's war council and offered little else as far as an explaination. He was the emperor and he didn't have to apologize so he signed the edict and left. Let them question his authority and see where it got them.

"The feast?" Lu Xun made the mistake of replying instead of just assuring his lord it was seen to and discussing it with Zhou Yu later.

"Yes, you don't expect our own General to be married without a proper celebration? Especially when Shu has a wedding planned as well. We must not be outclassed, not by a ragged bunch of miscreants."

Zhou Yu quickly interjected. "But the groom to be has asked for a simple ceremony. You of all people know how much of a recluse Tai is; certainly you can respect his modesty."

"The prestige of Wu will not been shown up, Tai will understand." Quan waved them away.

* * *

Liu Shan carried his box of toys down to the bridge and looked around. He dumped the box over, emptied his toys out and flipped the box over to sit on. He could have sworn he had different toys not too long ago, like a lady with big boobies. These all looked so new, but they were still pretty cool so set up his toys and began to play.

Diao Chan put on her best innocent smile and approached the little boy, "Shan?"

The Shu heir fell off his box and looked up at the familiar face. His smile brightened and he ran to her. Lady Diao loved Lu Bu and Lu Bu was working for Master Zhuge. She was a friend! "I miss them!"

"Me too." She lied and faked a few tears for his benefit. "I want you to meet someone; he is an admirer of Kongming's."

Shan looked over her shoulder and saw the man she spoke of. Of course he was a friend! Robes, funny hat and a war fan...he must have really admired Master Zhuge to copy his look like that! "Hello."

"Liu Shan, I have been looking forward to meeting you. My name is Sima Yi."

* * *

"What do you mean you found me a woman?" Zhao Yun looked at Cal quizzically.

"I mean I found you someone to screw. God, has it been that long that you need me to review what you do with a girl?"

"No." Yun said absorbing the shock of the statement. "Who is it?"

Cal grinned. "Da Qiao."

"WHAT?"

"If you object to fucking the most beautiful woman in China, you're gay. No more protests, you're definitely gay." Cal crossed her arms and watched him get angry. He reminded her of a little puppy when he got mad, trying his damnedest to bare his teeth and muster a growl to no avail.

"She's...the emperor's widow!"

"Not our emperor, so what does that matter?"

"Cal...she's not going to agree to it."

"Already has. I believe she was so happy she humped Zhou Tai's leg when he told her. That is one horny little girl, enjoy."

* * *

"Lin, sweetie. You look ravishing." Huang Zhong said from behind a pile of clothes.

"Liar."

"Your eyes glow with the fervor and radiance that I remember from twenty years ago."

"Closer to thirty." Kwan Lin huffed and emerged from her armoire. She couldn't help but remember the days when she was young and carefree, stupid enough to believe the herbal remedy of yesteryear was good enough to stop pregnancy.

"Mmmm...but what a time we had." Zhong winked.

"I don't remember it that well, want to refresh my memory?" Lin unbuttoned her cheongsam and dropped it to the floor.

* * *

Zhang Fei brushed back the flap to Zhao Yun's tent and looked around. Drab as ever. "Okay girl, here you go. This is your new home."

Chin Lien fumbled with the veil Zhang Fei insisted that she wear. He was disturbed by her missing teeth, but they always were until they found out how great a toothless blowjob was. Too bad she had that canker sore on her lip. "Shall we…"

"You ain't mine." Fei brushed her hand off. "You're now property of Zhao Yun. Just show him a good time and molest him a bit. Okay?"

Chin Lien gasped. Did he just say Zhao Yun? _THE_ Zhao Yun? Couldn't be. That sexy stud wouldn't need a whore, er concubine. It must have been a mistake. Perhaps he said Zhao Yan. "Zhao Yun, the tiger general?"

"Well I'm sure he's not a tiger in bed. Just help him find the right hole and maybe instinct will kick in, okay?" Fei pointed to the bed. "Just wait for him; he'll be here tonight after the weddings. You're a surprise, so…you might have to rape him. Do what you need to do."

As the fat guy left, Lien let the realization hit her. She, rejected whore of the three kingdoms, was going to rape Zhao Yun. It was like heaven! Now….what was she going to use to tie him down with? He was thin; the thin ones always were hard to tackle. The advantage was in her favor though; she had been staring at his watercolor porn for so long. She was Zilong's #1 fangirl and by gods she was going to prove it to him tonight! As she pulled off the veil a small patch of skin came off with it. Damn leprosy, Zhao Yun deserved every little piece of her.

* * *

"What if we don't throw a party and you serve cookies? Would that work?" Pang Tong queried as Lu Xun vented his frustrations with his new catering responsibilities.

"Doubtful. The glory of Wu is at stake." Zhou Yu lamented and watched Zhou Tai lean back into the lap of his future wife.

"I really don't care. Just as long as he marries us." Tai announced and rubbed his head against Ying's thigh.

Yue Ying brushed his hair from his face and traced his scar. "We can't skip out on his speech like last time."

"Ugh." Lu Xun threw his hat to the ground. "Not another speech."

"Does anyone recall what we did last time to shut him up?" Zhou Yu asked. He was ready to conspire; after the ceremony was completed he and Xiao would have a quiet night alone together. She had even suggested she hide under his robes at the ceremony, but he objected. He knew he wouldn't be able to hide his happiness when his little wife wrapped her lips around him and began to flicker her tongue over...

"Zhou Yu? Are you okay?" Lu Xun asked startled by the sudden happy look on his mentor's face. Happiness was not an emotion that the man chose to express.

* * *

Cal trotted Red Hare along the small path towards the river and looked around for any sign of her beloved Mengqi. After their discussion she had started thinking and she had her own questions to ask and a frightening admission to make. She couldn't believe her eyes when she spotted him though and it took her breath away. There in the river was Ma Chao in all his splendor, stripped to the waist and knee deep in the water. Unable to pass up such a wonderful opportunity she brought Red Hare to a halt and stared at his magnificent body.

It was one of those rare occasions when he tied his hair up, something he actually admitted to growing his hair out for. Apparently all her little remarks about Liu Bei's adorable hair tassels and ponytail, made him jealous. Thank god for that. His hair was hastily tied up with a strap of leather and most of it was too short to be contained so it fell down around his face and outlined his innocent features. She couldn't get over how pure he still looked to her, probably because of his sweet smile when he told her he wasn't going to have sex with her. Slowly she let her eyes wander down his chest and bit her lip when she thought about getting her lips on his pert little nipples. Of course it would evolve into a playful nibble while she ran her hands over his abs and chest, and then finally be able to strip off those damned pants and have her way with him.

But it was that innocence that now haunted her…because she was so far from it. That's why she got along with Lu Bu, they were both made to be destroyers. Trained to kill and used by various lords, they could both list powerful men they killed. Sure he had killed two fathers but it was she who had slit throats in the dark after sharing a man's bed. Certainly they ranked close enough to warrant the same amount of disgust. Lu Bu…Fengxian. Why couldn't you just behave? Why did you have to let them use you again? They were both slated to die, and apparently their nature could not be suppressed.

She looked away and thought about the memories that had recently resurged. Memories that forced her to admit something that she had never known…regret. No other life warranted a smidge of sorrow or pity…but his suddenly demanded a lot more. He had tried to change her, which she had taken as another way to be used; another equipable item like his armor, spear or horse. But now the fog of whatever drugs or hormones had eased her memory loss were gone and she remembered a lot. Sleeping in his arms, riding into the forest and a lot of interesting conversations. He had tried to kill their lord, by manipulation of Zhuge Liang but still he attempted to assassinate Liu Bei. Still, she missed him and stop thinking about him. Discouraging thoughts were, as usual ,interrupted by an obnoxious scream. "What the hell are you doing to my kid?"

"Me?" Chao closed his eyes as Xi splashed river water in his face. "He's the one hitting me!"

"You can't just dunk him in the water, dumbass." Cal slipped out of the saddle and let Red Hare wander over to a patch of grass. With a smile she lifted her wailing son out of Chao's hands and set him in the sand of the beach. "Let him get used it the water…make it a toy."

"Well I was just about to do that." He lied. Well it was fairly obvious and the kid was now splashing and chirping happily. How long did they take to grow up and understand what you wanted them to do? "I thought you were getting ready."

"Well, I have something I need to confess."

"Do all of you Romans have an obsession with 'confession'?" Chao ran his wet hand down her arm. He really was going to have a hard time making it until tonight.

"It's about Lu Bu…"

"Not again."

"Mengqi…I loved him." Cal bit her lip and tried not to cry. Somehow through all of that bickering and deceit, Lu Fengxian had accomplished the impossible.

"So…where does that leave me?" Chao brushed her hair away from her face and wiped away her tear. "You still love me?"

"Yes…"

"Then it doesn't matter. He betrayed us even after you saved him countless times. Cal, it doesn't matter to me."

"Are you sure?"

"He fathered your child….I know you're going to have some feelings for him. Just give me the rest of your life…that's all I want."

"SNARF!" Lu Xi squealed and slapped at his mother's boot. This water thing was getting old.

* * *

Red Hare leisurely grazed through a clump of particularly nice clover. His senses were overwhelmed with the sweet smell and rich tasty leaves, so much so that he almost missed the scent. Flicking his ears he slowly picked his head up, rolling his up lip, and tried to catch it again. He knew that smell…and it was wonderful. Excited he pranced over the top of the small hill and spotted her. Beautiful silver hair, gleaming grey coat and that perfect round ass that begged to be mounted. Best part was Lotus was in heat and that little grey rodent Ares was behind Wei lines! He nickered seductively and advanced…she would know the pleasure of being with a real stallion. Today his little Xi Liang beauty would be all his.

* * *

Zhang Fei chewed on his meatbun smirking to himself as he looked around the table. Cal and Chao were waiting on Liu Bei to finish the speech he prepared in order to get on with their wedding. Zhao Yun sat at the table next to his new little sister, mentally preparing himself to give her away to her newest husband. If Zilong only knew what was in store for him back at his tent, he would be in a better mood. "So Chao, you excited?"

"Why wouldn't I be?" Chao tapped his fingers on the table as Liu Bei scratched out a few lines.

"Well, I might be a bit nervous."

"I'm not." Chao snapped.

"Well about the wedding night. I mean Cal obviously has more experience than you. A lot more." Fei peeled away some wrapper and munched on it as the three young warriors glared at him.

"I'm experienced enough." Chao growled.

"Better be. I mean to be compared to Cao Cao and Lu Bu…especially for you. Man that's gotta suck." Fei noticed Chao's hands clench and Cal gently rub his arm.

Cal cocked an eyebrow. "I think I forgot how much I never liked you. You're so much better as a drunk…less visible."

"Eh. Never really liked you that much either." Fei stretched as Ma Dai raced up to the table. "But you kept the little Dragon there from getting in the way of our oath brother…stuff. You're not all that bad."

"In fact it was you who got me in trouble back in the Yellow Turban days…." Cal suddenly recalled the memory of Dun striding into her tent to let her knew about the information leak. It would be nice if he could be here for this…

"Yide…" Liu Bei realized what was going on around him. How his brother could talk himself into trouble so quickly…where the hell was Guan Yu? Wasn't it his job to keep him in line?

"Thank god! I thought I'd be late…I'm not am I?" Dai's eyes locked onto his cousin's fuming eyes. Chao was pissed…but at who? Yes Dai had way too much to drink and had almost slept through the entire day. That would have been bad. Especially considering he was the best man and had the ring. Maybe. Where the hell did he put that? Hopefully that wasn't the treat he fed to Lotus last night.

Zhao Yun thumped his fist down on the table and stood. "Nope, just on time. We should go get ready."

Cal gave Fei a nasty look and turned to pick up Lu Xi who was sleeping in the grass. "Zilong…will you baby-sit for me?"

"That's selfish!" Fei suddenly shouted. "Maybe he was thinking about finding himself a piece of ass tonight!"

Zhao Yun let out a slow and heavy breath as Liu Bei just shook his head and smacked Fei in the gut. Yun looked down at Xi who groggily was being shaken from his sleep. "Of course I can…"

"I can do it." Liu Shan suddenly ran up and gave a fake smile. "Um…I have a bunch of toys down by the bridge anyhow and I can play with him. I suppose I need to learn how to take care of a kid anyhow."

Liu Bei was happy with the sudden step up in responsibility his boy was taking. It probably meant that he was becoming more accepting of his future sibling. However as the Shu Lord's attention returned to the table he noticed the cocked eyebrow of Zhao Yun. Shit! "Of course son..."

"Why would he need to learn how to take care of a kid?" Yun queried.

"Shang's pregnant." Cal hefted Xi onto her shoulder and pet Shan's head. "About damned time she figured it out too."

"You knew?" It was now Bei's turn to look confused.

"Yeah, I didn't want to spoil the surprise. I bet it was a painful experience when you let her in on the secret." Cal laughed as the man winced. "Come on Shan, we'll pack up some of Xi's toys for you both."

Bei blushed. Yes, when he did tell her what her diagnosis was she did indeed punch him in the stomach. That was not how it was supposed to be. _We're having a baby! Phst…gack._ However he loved her for that reason, even if it bruised later. The secret was out, so he ought to make it official. "Well, I didn't want to steal any of the limelight from the couples today. I was going to wait. Shang is pregnant; I'm going to be a father again."

As the officers congratulated his father, Liu Shan wandered off with Cal. He looked at the brat clinging to her neck and thought about all those things Uncle Kongming had said about her and …it. He had even written things in his journal, something Shan had managed to steal from his room before Yue Ying could get it. It had taken him a while to find out the meaning to the word that described Lu Xi, even longer to learn how to say it. It was worth it now, now that he had met Sima Yi. The man understood what Uncle Zhuge meant by it and had formulated a plan to help him carry out his wishes! What a wonderful friend this Sima Yi was if he'd go out of his way just to tie up loose ends. Liu Shan looked at the sleepy eyes of Lu Xi once more and thought about that chapter in the journal as he mouthed the word, "Abomination".


	40. Finally United

Chapter 41

Finally United

* * *

The sun began to slowly sink from the sky as the time neared for the first wedding of the day, however it did not save the guests from the reflection off the groom's armor. Ma Chao stood proudly before his Lord, oblivious to his 'radiance', and awaited the arrival of his bride. Having attended her first wedding, he was determined to see to it that his own overshadowed Lu Bu's…and then some. "How long does it take for Zhao Yun to get dressed?"

Liu Bei smiled at him as the look of impatience began to work its way across his face. "He just acquired his sister and you're asking him to give her away so soon…maybe he's stalling."

"Better not be." Chao growled then heard the familiar swoon that signified the arrival of General Zhao Zilong, only he could elicit that lovesick sound from fangirls. Turning to the rear of the gathering he saw his future wife on the arm of her sworn brother. His heart raced, she looked fantastic! He insisted that she let her hair remain wavy for the ceremony; he found that to be incredibly arousing. Not many women in China had curly hair nor the muscling of a trained fighter and he was suddenly struck by how deeply in love he was. His hands began to sweat and he was finally speechless.

"Something wrong with the way I look?" Cal whispered to her escort.

Zhao Yun snorted. "Probably the stunned silence is because your cleavage isn't visible."

"Or because you had to show me up. Jackass." Cal heard the coos of the fangirls as they drooled over their obsession. Zilong was in his finest outfit, his armor plating shined to perfection and his hair a shimmering black river flowing off his head.…the women were ready to pounce. Cal rolled her eyes then noticed the hungry look from Da Qiao. It was her turn to snicker as the mental images of Zhao Yun being raped by a little girl crossed her mind. "Do you know how to be kinky?"

"What?"

"In bed. You know how to be kinky or do we need to discuss strategy at the reception? You're going to be representing Shu tonight in that Qiao's bed and I don't want you to make us look bad. She was married to Sun Ce after all…and he looked like he was a winner in the sack."

"Cal, maybe this isn't the best time to talk about this…your fiancé's waiting." Zilong took a deep breath but felt his cheeks flush. Damn her for being able to talk so casually about sex.

"Avoiding the question?"

"I can be kinky."

"No you can't." Cal felt his elbow jab her in the breast. "That's not kinky."

"It wasn't supposed to be, it was supposed to shut you up. Let's start walking so I can get rid of you sometime today." He tugged on her arm and the two proceeded to walk through the crowd towards the river where Liu Bei, Ma Chao and Ma Dai awaited. He didn't really want to talk about much at all right now; the thoughts of his own life were nagging him. He was getting older and with each passing year he failed to find a woman that really interested him. What hurt the most was that everyone was falling in love around him and he remained the ever-present bachelor. He wasn't sure what he really wanted: a warrior wife or a simple one. He envied Chao and Bei for being able to bring their spouses with them…but he saw the anxiety when they sent them off to battle. Could he do that? Ever? His strength was in protection and it would drive him mad to know his love was out there without him. Love? His love? Who was he kidding. He hadn't found a single woman that made him think of settling down thus far, what was to say he'd find one ever? Only attention he ever saw was from horny fangirls, women who wanted to use his body…who wished to possess him. The kind that sent him studded leather collars and a note saying they had the leash looped around their bedpost.

"Zilong…you alright?" Cal tugged on his sleeve as they approached Chao.

"Yeah." He bent down and kissed her forehead. "This isn't as easy to do as I thought." He held out her hand for Chao then stepped back. "You take care of her or you will answer to me."

Chao gave him a smile and pulled his woman close. The moment was here…and his heart was about to stop. This was how he had imagined it: surrounded by his friends and family, a woman next to him that the world envied and stunning setting. However the serenity of the best moment of his life quickly eroded as a barge floated down the Chang Jiang with a very drunk naked Wu pirate singing a song about venereal diseases.

_Her name was Chin Lien, She was a whore  
With her skin falling off down there, man what a score__  
She had Herpes and __Gonorrhea__  
Shit did it hurt to pee….AHHH_

Ma Dai burst into laughter as Gan Ning continued to sing about the ugly toothless whore with leprosy that he had once bedded. His laughter was cut short as his furious cousin gave him the stare of death. Biting his lip he handed Chao the wedding ring and flashed an apologetic smile. "Sorry, but it was kind of funny…" Dai winced as Chao snatched the ring away, purposely yanking on his cousin's pinky finger to get it off as viciously as possible.

* * *

A very irritated young Wu general stood watching the outrageous display by Gan Ning out in the middle of the river. "He is a worthless drunk….the man should be demoted for this. Straining ties with Shu because he is irresponsible…"

"Mmm." Lu Meng sighed and looked away from his new apprentice. He was forced to find a new young man to study with him since Lu Xun's newest obsession was following Pang Tong around like a lost puppy. He was genuinely lost without something to do, something productive. He accepted the blame for the Jingzhuo catastrophe and both kingdoms seemed to be keeping their distance. All but this one lost young man.

"Really, he's just a liability."

"Ling Tong, is it because his actions are offensive or because he killed your father?"

"Killing my father was offensive." Ling Tong snorted. "We should shoot him."

Lu Meng moaned and rubbed his temples. At least Lu Xun's bouncy fervor was tolerable, Ling Tong's cynicism and obsession with destroying Gan Ning was hopeless.

"Shoot him with fire arrows, that way the barge catches on fire and burns him out away from us. I can't believe the amount of diseases he's contracted…and this Chin Lien whore is just vile. Who would be interested in peeling someone else's sloughed off skin from your private parts? The man not only has poor taste and bad judgment but is a walking plague. Let's rid Wu of him now, seize the chance!"

Meng's eyes drifted over to the wedding where Liu Bei had just finished his speech. The anxious Ma Chao quickly bent down and kissed his new wife and Cal melted into his arms. The happy couple who finally managed to overcome all the set backs to finally be together…on the eve of the biggest battle of their lives. Cao Cao's army was large and his new strategist was unfamiliar to all of them. Shu was weak and morale was still bad thanks to loss of Zhuge Liang, Jiang Wei and Lu Bu. Then there was the unfortunate mess with Guan Yu. He looked back at Ma Chao who had single-handedly kicked his ass that day he had ruined his career. Stupid decision Meng, Guan Yu would never betray Liu Bei. What the hell made you think that? He then remembered a more carefree time when the bouncy Sun Shang Xiang had tried to set him up with Cal…seemed like ages ago. How times changed. His weary eyes shifted and noticed that Ling Tong was rifling through Pang Tong's stash of toys, setting off a firecracker. Well maybe something's didn't change that much.

* * *

Zhang He sighed sweetly with a dreamy look upon his face. "I love weddings."

Diao Chan's face was set in disgust. "Why is that bitch still alive? I can't believe you can stand here and watch this without being ashamed of your failure. You were supposed to send her home!"

"You are as dumb as you look, aren't you?" Zhang He purred. "That route still remains open, I still managed to deliver the letter to its destination. Certainly that will stir up some interest in Rome."

"Why not just kill her? Why these games…"

"Because..." Sima Yi fanned himself and looked down the hillside and at the gathering below. "It is more enjoyable to destroy everything a person has than to grant them a quick death. Lord Cao has already proven to me that torture is not enough to shatter that woman. Let her have her happily ever after for now, the longer it takes for us to destroy it….the more crippling our blow will be. At the very least if these Romans are true to their reputation, they will want to eliminate this one individual that has escaped their grasps. While they are here I will begin discussions on trade agreements to further advance the prosperity of our new empire."

"They like to conquer everything…" Zhang he cocked an eyebrow

"Yes, but they are a fading empire. As strong as they appear they are not accustomed to the barbarians as we are. I see that being their downfall. Especially if they provoke me. It isn't difficult to stir up the simian tribes of the north." Sima Yi smirked at his friend, waiting for him to follow through with his statement.

The beautiful butterfly general grinned. "How convenient then that the one man in China that has connections with those tribes is Ma Chao…."

"It will be fun, won't it?" the robed strategist placed a light kiss on Diao Chan's forehead. "So why don't you go meet with Liu Shan and get the Lu brat from him while they are distracted?"

* * *

Cal's mind went blank as Ma Chao's lips pressed firmly against hers, but only for a second. She tilted her head and drove her tongue into his mouth making him give the slightest moan that raised the eyebrows of an irritable Wu King.

"Public indecency...defiling the sanctity of marriage…"

"Shut up! Who are you to talk about public indecency, you look like a transvestite!"

"Look who's talking, tom-boy"

Liu Bei groaned as the two Sun children continued to bicker in the front row of the assembly. "Sunny…"

"Is that's mom's tiara?"

"Is that really Liu Bei's kid?"

Ma Chao ignored the fight behind him and gazed down into his wife's eyes. His face lit up with a smile that hadn't graced his face since well before his family had been killed. "We did it."

"No…we haven't yet." Cal said and rubbed his abdomen.

"We're married…"

"I'll celebrate after it's consummated." Cal gave him another kiss and grinned while tugging on his belt.

"It's all you ever think about."

"Pretty soon it's all you're going to be thinking about too."

"Who says I haven't been already?" Chao caressed her cheek. "You never have anything to worry about again."

"When was I worried?"

"There's only one way to shut you up isn't there?" Chao grinned like a boy then looked around noticing the crowd was concentrating on the sibling brawl.

"It's a diversion, do you really want to stand around all day and let the opportunity pass?" Cal smiled as Sunny ripped off Sun Quan's furry bra and began beating him over the head with it. Certainly this was more entertaining then the way she had chosen to start a ruckus at Sunny's wedding. Guilt washed over her as she remembered that particular night with Lu Bu. The argument, the skirmish and then the battle in the mud…

"Cal?" Zhao Yun whispered in her ear. "You need to leave now; your chance is slipping away."

Chao noticed her far off look and began to worry. What the hell was wrong? Why wasn't she as happy as he was? Could she really regret this decision so soon? Being his wife was supposed to make it all better for her…wasn't it?

* * *

Zhou Tai swatted away the feminine hand that slowly crept up his thigh and was dangerously close to snaking into his pants. "You've got another hour, relax."

"I can't wait that long." Yue Ying whimpered.

"Then go untie Quan's sash and display his frilly panties to the world."

Ying's eyebrows rose. Well, she and Sunny did owe Cal for covering for them way back when. "Yes Captain."

_Sweet Chin Lien,  
dum dum dum DUM__  
Good times never were that good!__  
I've been in pain,__  
Ever since you sucked my wood._

Zhou Tai frowned. No wonder pirates had a bad reputation. These songs were terrible, and the subject matter was even worse. Surely Gan Ning was never that desperate. "Darling, second thought….see if you can save Quan and get him to marry us early."

"Isn't saving his ass _your_ job?"

"There isn't a person in Wu capable of handling Lady Sun, I prefer to outsource that to you."

* * *

"What's wrong?" Chao fell backwards onto his cot pulling his wife down with him.

"Nothing."

"Cal, what?" He grumbled. Why did everything in his life have to be like this? "You can't start hiding things from me now that I'm your husband."

"What made you decide that you loved me? You were so definitive when you told me I was just concubine material…"

"You are the most incredible woman I ever met. Nothing stops you, not even traveling to the other side of the world. Honey I made a mistake back then. I didn't realize that your weren't just a friend. I looked forward to talking with you because you were funny and crazy…and you had faith in me even when I didn't. I didn't think it could be more than just a friendship till you were gone. That was the worst ride of my life. Suddenly realizing I had thrown you away…"

She leaned down and kissed him. "Sorry, I just can't believe this has happened….after everything. You're mine." Her hands quickly began to unfasten his armor.

"Your turn. You never told me what made you fall for me." He nibbled at her fingers as they worked on his breastplate

"Me? It was lust at first sight."

"That's romantic." Chao muttered.

"Then you refused me…no one ever refused me. You were noble and righteous…angry and fierce….you had everything all wrapped up in a perfect body." She rubbed his bare chest. "Nipple!"

Chao yelped as she latched her mouth onto his nipple and sucked on it. He fumbled with her dress more than eager to get her out of it and finally prove he was man enough for her. "No biting!"

* * *

Zhao Yun sighed as the elder Qiao winked at him and pointed to her tent before sneaking away. It was just weird….how the hell was he going to explain being in her bed to anyone? It was more than just a simple lay…he had a reputation. A reputation that attracted all the wrong kinds of women. Sweet innocent Zilong, he needed to be corrupted or tied up in a barn loft. The good ones didn't think they were good enough for him and never tried. How many women slipped through his fingers because they didn't speak up….he'd never know.

"Zilong, I know that pirate's singing is horrid….but is it really making you sick?"

Zhao Yun looked up into the confused face of his lord, Liu Bei. "Oh…uh…"

"He's horny I bet. Needs some satisfaction…needs to find out if his dick still works." Zhang Fei practically shouted above the Sun family squabble.

Yun turned red as the men and women of both armies turned to look at him. "No, Fei…I never have to question that…"

"Well it always works when you wank, but if you can't keep it up long enough in a chick…that's what really counts. When was the last time you used it?" Fei queried.

"Poor Zhao Yun." Guan Ping muttered as his father sighed heavily and looked away.

"As long as it's someone on our side and he's not pissing off a Wu general…" Guan Yu whispered.

"Then again all that yaoi. You and Ma Chao, you and Jiang Wei, you and that squeaky Wu kid with the hat...probably some with you and Sun Quan too. You're always on the bottom. You're just so submissive." Fei continued and saw a plate of cookies. He grabbed a handful and began munching.

"What did he just say?" Sun Quan asked before having his face smashed into the ground by his sister.

"Your jealousy is embarrassing Fei." Zilong snorted with the only comeback he could muster. "You envy my popularity and have to make up stories…"

"Make up!" Fei looked around and waved to his son, Zhang Bao, to bring a sack towards him. "I've been buy these for my baby girl, Xing Cai, she loves these yaoi comics. I'd rather her look at two guys than thinking about her and some guy, it's all good to me. Bao, get your worthless ass over here and show him those scrolls."

Before the startled Little Dragon's eyes, the Zhangs dumped a huge meatbun sack full of comic scrolls and postcards on to the banquet table. "What the fuck!"

Yue Ying completely forgot her mission as the ten pounds of yaoi material was emptied onto the table. "Oh….You even have the ones with Lu Bu and Zhang Liao!"

"I thought they were funny. Not as funny as big brother and Cao Cao." Fei smiled.

"What." Liu Bei's amused expression vanished.

"Bao! What are those you're sneaking off with? Is that my yuri?" Fei stomped off after his son who dashed off, comic scrolls neatly tucked under his arm.

"There's one of me!" Guan Ping squeaked with delight. He snatched it from Yue Ying's hands and began to examine the scroll further. "The battle of Jingzhuo! This is awesome, look I'm a hero!"

"Huh…Huang Zhong and a Nanman Elephant, that's new." Yue Ying tossed the scroll to the ground. "And repugnant."

Zhou Tai slowly rose from his seat and wandered up to the banquet table. "Lord Sun, perhaps you could marry us before my fiancé runs off with a stack of comics instead."

Guan Ping's mouth dropped open. "Oh my god….Lu Meng has tentacles."

Ying looked over at the scroll Ping had. "And if you skip a few cells, you'll see those tentacles are going to rape you. Looks like your dad is too occupied thanking Ma Chao for his assistance to help you. You're not the hero babe, you're the uke. Don't feel bad, you obviously inherited it from your father. "

Sun Quan stood up and dusted himself off. "Of course Tai, if you feel it necessary to rush your marriage I understand. I can see how lax these Shu ruffians are in regards to keeping their women in line, I imagine the sooner you can start reminding Lady Huang of her proper place the better. I can only hope Lord Liu and Lord Ma will follow your example."

The loud smack was all the crowd heard and then an unceremonious thud. The Lord of Wu, lay unconscious on the ground as a smirking Sun Shang Xiang stood ready, in a boxing stance, to land another blow if her sibling stood up. "I'll show you how to keep a bitch in line…"

Liu Bei's eyes grew wide as he realized his wife had just knocked out her brother. "Sunny!"

"Now who's going to marry us?" Yue Ying whined and kicked at Quan's body, not before pocketing a few postcards.

"Xuande will marry you, like he should have in the first place." The queen of Shu declared then let her eyes drift across the gathering. "And all of you are going to tell Quannie that he preformed the ceremony before being knocked out. Understood?"

"Aye AYE Sunny!" Gan Ning yodeled from the river. "You're pretty bitchy, that's hubby of yours get you knocked up?"

"Someone shoot him." Zhou Yu growled.

Liu Bei wrapped his arm around his wife and cleared his throat. "General Zhou and Lady Huang, we are here today to celebrate your love…"

* * *

Wei Yan yawned as he stretched out on the beach to dry off in the last bit of sunlight for the day. The sun was aglow with a red hue and it was genuinely gorgeous. He couldn't resist going for a swim after the weddings were completed, especially after Huang Zhong started bragging about getting Kwan Lin back in the sack. He was happy for his friend, but he really didn't want those mental pictures. The rest of Shu was enjoying the moment of bliss before the battle and he was not different. Except for the fact that he was alone, or so he thought.

Kwan Jun had been watching him bathe, without a shred of guilt. Ever since his delightful fish fry in just his loincloth, she couldn't get enough of him. His thighs, his abs, his sweet smile and his extra large package were about all she could think about. As if she couldn't get enough of his phenomenal body slipping through the water, he was also a decent diver. Every now and again he unknowingly treated her to the sight of his surprisingly tanned posterior sticking out of the water before he disappeared under the surface. Tonight, Wei Yan was going to be enjoying soft-shell crab, but the more interesting sight was his naked form stretched out upon the beach and she couldn't help but drool. Never being a shy woman, Jun stepped out of her secluded voyeur spot and approached him. "Good evening General."

Wei Yan opened his eyes and looked up at her cunning smile. He had seen that smile earlier that day when Zhong relayed the news that he was getting laid. He smiled back at her, "Join...me?"

"Don't mind if I do." Once she heard the awful "That's another victory for Huang Zhong!" yelled in triumph from the direction of her home, she knew she could give into her desires. Her mother was having sex, there was no reason she should be proper.

* * *

Zhao Yun walked into the Wu camp cautiously, he still was rather skeptical about the 'arrangements' with Da Qiao. He could see the candlelit tent ahead and took a deep breath; the worst that could happen was a slap to the face. He approached and cleared his throat, "Lady Qiao?"

Da leapt off the bed and raced to the tent flap. She had been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Little Dragon; his body was to die for. "Come in!"

Yun looked into the tent and smiled uncomfortably. He could still remember Zhou Yu's smile when he admitted to the Qiaos being shared between the two friends. "You look...nice." It was an understatement, she was one of the most beautiful women in China and she was in a slinky nightgown. His heart began to pound, how long had it been since...

"Here! I got you a robe so you'd be more comfortable. You can change over behind the screen." Da didn't give him much of a choice and shoved him towards the semi-transparent privacy screen and tossed him Sun Ce's old robe. Oh what fun she'd have.

The tiger general stood behind the ornate privacy screen and examined the robe. It looked like it was meant for a king, not some measly soldier like himself. He quietly slipped out of his clothes as Da hummed a happy song. Maybe this wouldn't be too bad; it seemed like she was eager…and now that his pants had fallen to the ground he was certain he couldn't hide his own excitement from her. He frowned at the robe as he slipped into it. It was big in the chest and unfortunately was the red of Wu making him all the more uncomfortable.

Da watched him step out from behind the screen, noting how he didn't fill out Sun Ce's robe at all. Well, he was a Shu general….not too surprising. "Sit down! I'll pull your hair up out of your face."

"That's very thoughtful." He said genuinely impressed as she rummaged for a ribbon. He sat back on the bed and enjoyed her little fingers combing through his hair. Then she started chirping again, talking to herself as she pulled his hair up into a ponytail. It was weird, she was tying it up so high but these southerners were kind of quirky. Then he noticed her childish giggles and thought he heard her call him a 'pussy'. "Excuse me?"

"Puss Ce." Da reiterated. "My Ce wasn't a tiger like his daddy, just a pussy cat. So I called him my Puss Ce"

Yun was about to laugh as the image of Da Qiao running around Jian Ye screaming "Where's my pussy?" floated across his mind….but then he looked in the mirror. Hair up on top of his head tied with a red ribbon and a robe displaying the family crest of 'Sun', he looked like….she was dressing him up to be her dead husband? "Uh…Lady Qiao?"

"Ever hear of cosplay, General?" Da asked as she handed the man a set of tonfas. "Ever take it to the next level? Or don't you know how to be kinky?"

Zilong grumbled and snatched the tonfas from her. That was it! Enough of this damned reputation, from tonight on no one was going to be thinking of Zhao Yun of Changshan as a prude! Whipping the tonfa around he gave her a wink. "How can I serve you my lady?"

"Oh that's not my Puss Ce at all!" She spun around on the cot and lifted her ass in the air, waving her new lace panties at him. "He'd smack my ass with his tonfa and get creative with the other one. Pull my pigtails! Call me a whore! Tell me you want my sister to do you with a strap on! At least try to act like my husband!"

Zhao Yun gulped. What the hell had he gotten himself into?

* * *

AN: Sorry it's been so long since I updated. It just took me a while to figure out how to write this chapter without sex...so I pushed that dilema off to Chapter 41. :) Sounds like a good 1 year anniversary update for this fic.

* * *


	41. Celebrations

Chapter 41

Celebrations

* * *

Pang Tong trotted his way toward the Wei camp on foot. He had observed in his many years that most people don't give any notice to pedestrians and he was going for the stealth option. He also had relatively bad experiences with equestrian activities and thought it best to take his chances without a steed for once. Worked at Chibi; might as well work here.

His quest was a personal one. Actually he was on two personal quests. His first was to get Cal's horse back as a wedding present. The second was to find his way into Cao Cao's harem and impregnate every last one of his concubines. It honestly just seemed like fun….so why not?

* * *

Zhao Yun thought that there was nothing in the world that could ruin the bliss of an ejaculation. He was wrong. Having a girl chanting "Pussy" made everything just go straight to hell. He had endured her bullshit. The bizarre penetration ritual with the tonfas, the grotesque usage of the words 'babe' and 'dude' and the random insults at his lack of bulk in comparison to the wonderful Sun Ce. He was quite certain that this is what made men turn to yaoi.

"Oh Puss Ce…Done so soon?"

That was the last straw. He was good at sex! He was thorough with foreplay, he varied his depth on a regular basis and he had average endurance! What the hell was wrong with her? He had to get out of here, and fast. This was not worth it at all, his damned hand never chanted or complained.

* * *

"I hate you. I'm never letting you touch me again. Ever..."

Liu Bei held back his wife's hair as she continued her vomiting into the pot. He sighed. Lady Gan never threatened him; she thought everything about her pregnancy was beautiful. Then again he hadn't been around her as much as he was around Sunny. He also was never punched by any of his previous wives. "Yes dear."

"This sucks"

"I know." He pet her head as the vomiting ebbed.

"I want to fight tomorrow."

"Sunny, no."

"I'm fighting Liu Xuande! It's my empire too."

* * *

"Nice…tits."

Kwan Jun moaned as Wei Yan's complement reached her ears. They were both licking and fondling each other's bodies on the same beach they had enjoyed lunch on. She couldn't resist him. Then she heard the horrid "Not too bad for an old man, ehhhh?" and buried her head in Wei Yan's wild hair. It was like an aphrodisiac. His scent surrounded her and sent her senses into overdrive. "I need you in me, now!"

Wei Yan's hands rolled over her smooth skin and his mouth followed. This trip might not be so bad after all.

* * *

"Are you sure this will work?" Liu Shan asked as he watched Diao Chan pick the young Lu child up in her arms.

"Of course it will, Sima Yi thought it up." Diao Chan held Lu Xi and pretended to care just a smidge about the boy's well being.

"I just want him gone." Liu Shan muttered and looked away.

"Do you remember what you have to do?" Chan wanted to kick Liu Bei's little brat. "Yes or No"

"Yes. I'd never let down Master Zhuge."

"Good." Chan gave the young boy a kiss on the forehead. "Good luck Shan"

* * *

Ma Chao buried his head in Cal's shoulder and panted. "I never thought it could be this good."

"Sex is great, as long as it's with the right person for the right reasons." Cal kissed his cheek and closed her eyes. How many times had she done this before, not caring who it was and only using it to get an advantage? His touch was so much more provocative than the others; his kisses were backed by meaning. The only protest she had was that he wanted to 'make love' instead of 'fuck like crazy'. She enjoyed it the first time. Slow and sensual, he had been so thoughtful in his foreplay. A difference from Lu Bu's manhandling and Cao Cao's sadism; but it was getting old. She wanted to have some fun. "Let me on top this time, huh?"

"Nope." He smirked and wrapped his sweaty arms around her. "I'm not letting you make this a competition."

"Because you'd lose."

"No, because that's not the point. It's our wedding night Cal! We've been waiting for this night for so long. Can't we just enjoy each other?" He placed a kiss on her jaw.

"You'll enjoy it alright…." She replied and tried to mount him in vain.

Chao held her as she struggled. "Keep wiggling though…it feels nice."

"You're tired anyhow, I'm just offering to do some of the work…."

"No!"

* * *

He heaved and closed his eyes to concentrate. As soon as he heard her fall he sprinted across the row of tents and made a dash for his own lines.

"Puss Ce!"

Zhao Yun winced and kept running, holding his clothes close to him in preparation to change out of this stupid red robe as soon as he got back to his own lines. He felt like Pang Tong, streaking across camp half naked chased by some demented girl. Finally he saw his tent and ducked into it. Triumphantly tossing his clothes off to the side and whipping the robe off he fumbled for a candle. His tent smelled like decaying flesh, someone must be playing a joke and leaving road kill in his cot again.

Chin Lien watched his god-like body illuminate as the candle flickered to life. Her eyes adjusted to the new light and she began salivating immediately. Without any teeth, the saliva just began dripping out of the corner of her mouth. She took no notice, her world revolved around one thing and one thing only. The image of perfection before her: Zhao Yun. He was already naked and erect! This was better than any dream she could concoct! Unable to contain her excitement any longer, she belted out a high pitched "SQUUUUUUEEEEEEE!" and stunned the man long enough to pounce.

* * *

Yue Ying yanked the blanket covering her masterpiece and smiled at her new husband. "Surprise! My newest invention…the sex swing."

Zhou Tai ran his hands through his hair and looked at her triumphant smile. No…he'd let her think this was entirely her idea. "Bored of my style so soon?"

"Hell no!" Ying wiggled herself onto the contraption. "But it will be fun."

"It will be useful when we're on a ship. Beds don't work that well at sea."

"When are we going sailing?" Ying asked and spread her legs.

"I though it might be nice to go introduce you to my Dad, after the battle of course. He's in Indonesia….retired on his private little island living the life of a king." Tai pet the inside of her thigh and watched her squirm.

"Yes captain…." She wrapped her legs around him and squeezed his ass. "As long as you ravish me every night like a respectable pirate should."

"Promise."

* * *

Lu Meng was on his way out of camp. The happiness just wasn't sitting right with his mood. He was just going to piss people off or drag them down. Ling Tong had disappeared twenty minutes earlier, muttering about putting laxatives in the musou wine. What did he care? He was young and his career was promising, who was he to give him advice?

Guan Ping finally started talking shit and he just opted to leave. The kid was drunk and trying to pick a fight, but his sire was anxiously awaiting the chance to help. Fine. He knew he outstayed his welcome. After the battle he was bound to be reassigned to the southern front; Nanman and the muggy southern rainforests. If that was his fate, so be it.

Tonight, he was just going to be by himself. Maybe do a little fishing, whatever it took to alleviate the depression.

Xxxxxxxxxx

Diao Chan handed the child off to Zhang He and made a sour face. "He stinks."

"I don't do diapers!" The butterfly general immediately gave the toddler to Sima Yi.

"Mmm…" Sima Yi rolled his eyes and took the boy over to the stream. "Intelligence and ingenuity are all it takes." With that he took the diapers off and held the child in the running water long enough to cleanse him of any stink.

"Well that's not so bad…." Zhang He murmured before Lu Xi started screaming at the top of his lungs.

* * *

Da Qiao heard the squee. A Squeee? Well only one man was worthy of it in Shu camp, well only one that was available…maybe two; that Guan Ping wasn't bad.

"SQUUUUEEEE!"

There it was again! Da raced towards the sound and was promptly knocked over by a fleeing naked Zhao Yun. She looked up as his firm and beautiful ass moved towards the river. Sexy….

"Zhaooooooo Yuuuuuunnnnnn!"

Da looked up and screamed. A creature was chasing after her beloved sex slave! Must be one of those Yetis they spoke about that lived in the mountains. Though she didn't recall them being able to speak, it was a known fact that fangirlism did weird things to people. The clear fact was that Zhao Yun was naked and she was still horny.

* * *

Cao Pi rolled his head over the side of the bed as the door opened. "Uh…hi mom"

Lady Bian closed her eyes and groaned. Of all her children why did the heir apparent have to be the one who liked being tied to his bed? Why did he have to marry that dominatrix whore? Now that she was stuck behind the lines in a small castle with her son and the harem, she regretted agreeing to chaperone the concubines on this campaign. "Pi this has got to stop."

"Mom….can you untie me?"

"Pi, this shit ends here. You put that whore of yours in her place, you hear me? That means getting her out of MY husband's bed and tied to yours!" The weary empress began untying the binds that kept her lanky son strapped to the bed. This boy was her shot at keeping her bloodline in power after Mengde left this world, so she had to do something. Last thing she wanted was that bitch Lady Ding having a brat in power when she was old and grey! "We fix this tonight. Take a bath and come see me. I'll have the seamstress make you some new clothes. We'll work on your attitude and this spineless personality of yours. Don't fail me son, if you do I'll start helping your brother instead."

"Zhi!" Pi asked in amazement. His brother was now…third in line for the throne?

"Accidents happen son…and war is a dangerous game. Men don't always come back." She stood up and tossed a blanket over his pasty body. "Do you understand me?"

"Yes mom…." Pi nodded as she left the room. Dammit, dealing with his father was bad enough but now that his mother was involved….all hell was going to break loose. He rubbed his wrists. Well the very least that could happen was getting his sex life back. Getting tied up and spanked only to watch his wife dress and leave the room….it was lacking in satisfaction. Knowing she was in turn being dominated by his father….even weirder. So maybe mom was onto something.

* * *

Zhao Yun looked over his shoulder as the 'thing' that was in his bed wobbled across the bridge and reached his side of the river bank. _Dammit._ This was the worst night of his life! Naked, cold and tired he continued his trek to the north where he knew he could lose her in the woods then circle back. Once he was back in camp he could rely on Guan Yu to watch his back. Happy with his strategy he was slightly baffled by the pink blur that materialized out of the shadows and into the moonlit clearing. He was even more surprised when a twenty pound mace knocked him in the head and sent him crumbling to the ground.

Diao Chan tossed aside her mace and untied the pink ribbons in her hair. As Zhao Yun groggily tried to regain his vision she slipped the silky ribbons around his wrists and tied him to the tree. With a smug smile she grabbed her maces and drove the handles into the sandy soil, then looped her remaining ribbon around his bare ankles and tied him to the stakes. "Well…if I've learned anything from my employers it is to enjoy the spoils of war…."

Zhao Yun finally regained his focus and looked up at the songstress before him. "Traitorous bitch, what the hell are you doing here?"

"I think I like you better quiet." She plucked the carnation out of her hair and shoved it in his mouth. "Much better."

* * *

Zhang He took a deep breath of the pleasant salty air and enjoyed the magnificent night. Such beauty! A clear evening, a full moon and the gentle sound of running water from the river made it a remarkable setting. That was until he was interrupted.

Chin Lien hobbled into the clearing and gasped for air. Mobility was not amongst her strongest skills. Most of the time she laid on the bed and let the clients do the work anything else just lead to bits and pieces falling off onto them. However this was a special occasion.

"Ewww…."

Chin Lien blinked. That voice…it was perfect! Like a musical instrument! And now that she could see better, she could tell the stranger was showing skin and has a sleek sexy body! Zilong was a fit young man and would easily outrun her so he was well gone by now. No matter, she was his property; he'd have to stop running eventually and then she'd be in his tent again. This man, however, was standing still and was a prime victim for an attack. "SQUUUUEEEE!"

* * *

AN: Yes it's been forever since an update and I am truly sorry. Rather than ruin the story by just writing 'something' I wanted to wait until the inspiration came back. It's short, I know, but it's something. Thanks for the dedication I know I don't deserve it. :) 


	42. Keep the Faith

**Chapter 42**

Keep the Faith 

* * *

Sima Yi was not expecting a horrified scream to pierce the solitude of the night. He jumped up and looked anxiously at the young Lu boy who had just nodded off to sleep. He didn't care who he had to pray to keep the boy in his peaceful slumber, as long as he didn't wake up and start his ear shattering crying again. Seeing no movement from the toddler, the Wei strategist grabbed his fan and stealthily crept along the deer path towards the vicinity of the screaming. Silence was all that greeted him when he found the little moonlit clearing however it was not from a lack of activity. 

His eyebrows rose as he saw Diao Chan straddling what appeared to be Zhao Yun, the pretty boy of Shu. He would have congratulated her for the capture of such a prestigious general had the man not been tied up and naked. The beautiful songstress was going to play the sexual predator for once and he figured the world owed her that much. Turning his dark eyes from the scene, he noticed something flailing around. Now this was something to be worried about: Zhang He was being attacked by a molting woodland creature. Seeing the panic in his friend's eyes he raised his fan to strike.

* * *

Liu Bei looked over his shoulder at his sleeping wife. Finally, after hours of vomiting, she had fallen asleep in their cot. He was worried about her, especially now that she was exhausted thanks to the morning sickness. Would she regret this? Would this test their love? 

He turned back to his paperwork. How easy all of this was for the bookworms like Jiang Wei and Zhuge Liang. They reconciled everything so quickly. The supplies, the men, the equipment….everything was out of control. They lost too many men along the way and the army was beyond field repair. After tomorrow the Shu forces were no longer an offensive force. They would have to retreat to Cheng Du and refit, recruit and rest.

He wanted to ask if this was the right course of action, but Pang Tong was missing. Now he was feeling the true burden of command, the loneliness and self-doubt. The people expected him to do the right thing, his officers expected him to do the right thing and he owed it to Sunny as well. A dispatch from Pang De, back in Cheng Du, had arrived the previous night. Almost two months old, the general had been forced to return home in order to defend his home province from bandits and barbarians. There was a heavy undertone of bitterness though. Obviously the man thought it Lord Ma Chao's duty to protect his home and not help Shu accumulate land. He dared not write that, but Liu Bei wasn't a fool. He could read between the lines.

He looked at the map. If they made it past tomorrow then there would be a new threat. Nanman. The wild King of the South was threatening villages along the Southern border of Shu. There were countless reports of gigantic beasts and fierce tigers raiding with the half-naked tribesman. Would it ever end? He didn't want to burden anyone with this, this was supposed to be a happy day.

"Xuande, come to bed."

Liu Bei looked back to the source of the voice and smiled. "Yes, dear." It could wait until morning.

* * *

Da Qiao's hungry eyes quickly scanned the scene. Sex, Sex and one free man with a fan! She would not let this opportunity pass her by. Knowing that tracking Zhao Yun had wasted precious hours, she ran at the robed figure and knocked him over. He let out a screech that made a few wild dogs howl. It didn't faze her, it would be dawn soon and her chance at anonymous sex would be gone! Damn men and their stupid battles, it got in the way of her needs. 

The fan bushed past her face in an attempt to swat her off; it turned her on. Feathers were so damned nice to play with, Zhou Yu had taught her that! She reached behind her and grabbed her folded fans attached to her belt and whipped them open. Each fan has dagger sharp needles on the end, to make them combat worthy, and they easily pierced the stranger's silky robes and the soft cushy earth beneath his body. Pinned to the ground she was now able to see her victim. "Who are you?"

Sima Yi cocked an eyebrow as the little girl grabbed his fan and put the handle between her teeth. Before he could answer she was feeling around his robe and had her petite hands around his scrotum. "I am Sima Yi and those are my balls you're fondling. Do you always greet people like this?"

"When I can. I'm Da Qiao and you're going to be addressing me as Master for the rest of the night. Got it?"

The Wei strategist actually had to laugh. What a funny little child Sun Ce had married. No wonder Wu never was a threat. His laughter was cut short as his robe was whipped open and his own fan was used against him. He shrieked in horror. "No! That tickles!"

"I know." Da grinned devilishly and swiped the man's exposed genitalia with his fan again. "And I'm not going to stop until you call me Master."

The dogs howled in protest as the shrieking tested their auditory tolerance.

* * *

"Me next!" 

"No me!"

"Please! I waited longest!"

"Easy girls." Pang Tong smooth and calm voice floated up from the pile of happy woman cuddled around and on top of him. One beefy girl was even serving as his mattress and seemed a bit too excited about his nipples. What did he care? They weren't his whores! "Well what would you like next?"

"Oral Sex!"

"Spanking!"

"Cockslapping!"

"Me first!"

"Well, I guess there is one last time before I have to go, huh?" Pang Tong watched the Nanman twins bounce up and down happily. Oh what a night!

* * *

Cal rolled over and grabbed at her new husband as he slipped out of bed. It was a little after dawn and he was having difficulty coping with missing drill practice. Never mind the great sex you just had all damned night long or the fact that everyone in the three kingdoms had heard her scream. No, Ma Chao the Splendid had to go serve his country. "Why don't you get back here and service me some more?" 

"I'm already late." He mumbled frustrated with the newfound pain. He was sore...though he couldn't complain. He looked over his wife and closed his eyes. Looking at her naked body wasn't going to help him get dressed.

"Everyone will understand. Hell everyone else was screwing last night too, or did you forget that? No one is going to be there except you." Cal stretched and pushed her hair out of her face. The sweat from last nice had made the curly portions of her hair resurface. It was irritating...well until she rolled over to look at her man stretching. "Damn." was all she could say. He was obviously feeling a bit sore from what she had forced him to endure. Who knew it would be so difficult to get him away from missionary position?

Chao noticed her dreamy look as he stretched and tried to prepare for a new day. Who the hell was he kidding; he'd never get out of this damned tent! Even if he did the bulge in his pants would be distracting him. He grinned and shook his hips from side to side to get her attention. He stretched again and put on a straight face, "Want something?"

"If you ride anything today that is not me, I'm going to rape you in front of the entire army."

Chao chirped a giggle before clearing his throat, trying to mask the unmanly sound. He couldn't help it; the husky words were comical but arousing. "So you liked that best hmmm?" He picked up his spear from the table and stuck it in the ground, teasing her. His unique fighting moves actually seemed applicable in the bedroom and he liked tormenting the woman who had been after him for years. It was payback and they both loved it. He rubbed his crotch along the pole so his erection was more evident and he watched her lick her lips.

"Stop teasing me. No more slow and sensual...I have to 'make love to you' bullshit. Fuck me...and hard."

* * *

"I forgot….what did I ask you to draw?" 

Ling Tong smiled fiendishly as the drunken pirate fought with his own headband. "Just what you asked for."

"Cool." Gan Ning nodded and wondered why it was dark. He also pondered why his headband was over his eyes. However the alcohol refused to allow him to draw a connection between the two. So what was it he asked the guy to draw?

Ling Tong dipped the tattoo needle back into the inkpot and continued his work. There on Gan Ning's already graffiti riddled back was a new creation, one that Tong had been dwelling on for a while. "Almost done."

"Is it good?"

"It's unforgettable. Certainly will make the enemy piss themselves." Tong grinned. _They'll be laughing to damn hard not to…._

"Yeah!" Ning shouted and poked himself in the eye. So if he still felt pain there, it meant he still had eyes. Good. So that was ruled out as a possibility. So why could he still not see?

* * *

Never before had he seen such a horrific site. In all his years of fighting there were few moments that could compare to this. Lu Meng had to close his eyes and turn away. 

Zhang He sobbed. The…thing was still on him. After all it had done with his body the previous night, it was still here. Its skin was flaking off and now coated his own. His perfectly pure milky skin….his precious pores being filled with stinky nasty ooze and pus! He finally screamed. "Have mercy! How can you turn your back on me?"

Lu Meng turned back and saw the creature look at him. He covered his ears as he saw the lusty look. He was not a fool; he knew the powers of a fangirl 'squee'. Although not a Wu bishie, he had a small following of women who wanted a real man. Sadly, even these fans could turn rabid and 'squee'.

The squee never escaped her mouth. Chin Lien coughed uncontrollably as one of her teeth dislodged and fell back into her throat. Unfortunately for her victim, she hacked it up onto his pretty silky hair.

Zhang He burst into tears as Lu Meng galloped away. Why, dear gods WHY? This was far worse than having to recite Yuan Shao's family tree on command! It even topped the time that he found out Xiahou Yuan had used his face cream for lubrication. The rush of panic and emotions enabled the Wei general to discover something called Musou Rage. Traumatized and without any hope of escape, he tapped into this mysterious power and attacked.

Lu Meng made it across the clearing before coming to a sliding halt. Sun Ce's squeaky adolescent wife was naked and sitting astride someone. Knowing how desperate she was for sex he panicked and swung his mount's head around. No way in hell was he getting knocked unconscious and saddled up in the Storm Harness again!

Finally back to a gallop, he jumped a fallen tree and noticed something out of place. A toddler? What the hell was a toddler doing here? He drew his horse to a halt as the boy began wailing and throwing a fit. Looking over his shoulder he saw Zhao Yun, the famous Shu babysitter, being molested by Diao Chan. Is this really what the world was coming to? Bestiality, pedophilia and bondage sex in a pure and beautiful meadow? Annoyed that the poor kid was left alone while the adults gave into their weird sexual desires, Meng picked up the boy and got back into the saddle. Time to go home.

* * *

The hairs on the back of Cal's neck stood up as she noticed someone new and bizarre talking to Liu Bei and she tugged at her husband's sleeve to get his attention. "Who is that?" 

Ma Chao's cocked and eyebrow and gripped his spear harder. "Don't know, we should find out."

Liu Bei was so focused on the cards before him that he didn't notice the new arrivals until they were blocking out the sun. "Oh…about time you two woke up."

"Who's the soothsayer?" Cal asked as the old man ran his creapy tattooed eye over her body.

"Zou Ci. He's joined our army." Liu Bei answered and then looked to the man. "So what does it mean?"

"It means your hard work can be undone by the next generation." Zou Ci smirked and gathered his cards.

"Okay." Liu Bei scratched his chin and looked to the deck of cards. "And that means…"

"Prepare to roll over in your grave…get a spacious tomb." Zou Ci laughed and looked at the two newcomers. He shuffled the cards and then laid them on the table. "So the famous couple finally arrives. The assassin who tries to outrun her past and the man who cannot protect his family, how happy tragedy must be to knock on only one door."

Ma Chao protectively wrapped his arm around his wife. "It will not happen again, over my dead body."

"Mmm…no. The cruelty is in watching others become those dead bodies and leaving you behind. So it will finally catch up with you, young lady, his bad luck is definitely going to outweigh your good luck."

"Who the hell are you to…." Cal stammered.

"I am an old man who is not afraid to speak what is on everyone's mind. I have studied your Western culture and I think you'll know what I'm talking about when I say the fates have been trying to cut your thread for some time. How very tragic that you let them snip your line because you married a man who can't keep his family alive. Your choice. How kind of you to stab him in the heart again…"

Cal stood speechless and could not come up with a single word in her defense. There were none. He was right about the Fates…he was right about being in the position to cause the most harm to the man she loved.

"But what do I know…I'm only an old man with a deck of cards."

Ma Chao looked down at his wife. All the time he spent convincing her everything would be fine only to have it undone in two simple sentences by a stranger. "If you're truly interested in serving Shu, where the hell have you been? Why join now?"

"I've been observing from afar." Zou Ci replied.

Liu Bei blinked off some of the exhaustion overcoming him. "I'm happy to have Zou Ci on our side. Remember, we're short handed since we lost Lu Bu, Zhuge Liang and Jiang Wei."

"We've always been outnumbered." Cal replied and felt the comforting squeeze from Ma Chao. Had this Zou Ci been less brittle looking, she knew her hot-tempered spouse would have already wailed on him.

"Who's the old guy?" Zhang Fei snorted as he approached. He quickly scanned the table and found no Zhao Yun. Where was that guy? He really wanted to tease him about losing his cherry to a half-rotted whore.

"Yide." Liu Bei frowned. Why was everyone so rude? Where was Yue Ying? He could count on her to be nice to the new guy! "This is Zou Ci, he is…"

"Hot for Cao Cao. Yeah. I heard about him chasing him around the battlefield. Disgusting." Zhang Fei stuck his tongue out and grabbed a meat bun.

"You're terribly insecure and mock others to compensate for your own inadequacies." Zou Ci tossed a card on the table. "Or so I've heard about you."

"Didn't we meet our geriatric quota already? Why do we need him?" Ma Chao hissed.

"You wouldn't need me if you didn't just kill three of your generals." Zou Ci smirked and flipped over another card.

"We wouldn't." Cal huffed. "Because we would have been destroyed already."

"Congratulations on the marriage, by the way." Zou Ci grinned. "Hope it works out better than the first."

"Where are the others?" Liu Bei asked and frantically looked around for anyone who could help this conversation. Where was Guan Yu? "Perhaps you three can find them so we can reorganize before the battle today."

* * *

Sun Quan fluffed up the furry collar on his royal robe and wondered how history would see him. His reign was already longer than his father and brother's, but it seemed his sister was outdoing him. While she was in Shu, he was going to get hell from mother about her being so far away. 

_Mommy, what about me?_ He gave his mother everything she asked for, even Huang Gai, which was disturbing. Whatever Lady Wu asked for, she got except for her daughter back home in Jian Ye. So far all of his plans had failed and now he was tied into an alliance with Shu.

He pushed back the tent flap and looked outside. Zhou Tai's little boat was still floating in the river. His concern now was the new diplomat from Shu, Yue Ying. As much as he'd miss his bodyguard, he would let him go on furlough for his honeymoon. That would take her away from Wu long enough for them to plan something. He had to end this alliance. It was bad for Wu to be tied to a 'kingdom' as insignificant and weak as Shu. However, the prospect of having Shu's officers as his own wasn't half bad. How could he arrange that?

* * *

"What's wrong?" Ma Chao tried in vain to grab his new bride by the arm. "Cal, what's happened?" 

"I can't find Xi." She whimpered and wondered if she should look around Liu Shan's tent again. Having torn the small 4' x 8' tent up already she knew no one was there. A sense of dread washed over her, just like the night when she discovered Lu Bu was missing.

"Shan is playing on the bridge…" Chao began to explain and watched his wife dart off in the direction of the bridge. He thought she had already taken Xi from him….so where was the boy? He certainly wasn't with Shan.

Cal ran to the bridge and a quick glance was all it took for her to see her son was not there. "Where's Xi?"

Liu Shan tugged on his fishing pole and tried to his smile. Master Zhuge would be proud! "Down there."

"Down where?" Cal growled and looked over the edge of the bridge.

Shan looked up and noticed Ma Chao trotting his way towards them. He was scared of him, he tended to yell a lot. So he blurted everything out like Master Sima had told him to. "He fell in. I'll get him with the pole. I told you I'd watch him."

Cal's mouth dropped open and she tried to digest what Shan was telling her. "He…fell in the river?"

"It's too cold to get him, so I'm using the pole." Shan smiled innocently.

Ma Chao arrived just in time to hear the last statement and just too late to reach out and grab his wife as she leapt off the bridge.

* * *

Yue Ying cooed softly as Zhou Tai nibbled on her ear and tenderly rubbed her nipple. "I can't even tell you how satisfied I am with this marriage so far." 

"Mmm?" Tai reached out with his tongue and flickered her ear lope. They had borrowed a nice little boat for the night after they broke her sex swing invention. He dropped anchor in the middle of the river and they set out to rate the various positions of the Kama Sutra. He was just happy to see the yaoi comics stay on shore.

Yue Ying stretched out on the deck, and gave Tai more room to play. They had gotten dressed earlier in an attempt to go back to shore and prepare for the battle, but it just hadn't worked out too well. "I don't want to go back."

"Me neither." Tai kissed her cheek and took his hands back. He was going to have to be strong and tear himself away from her. Especially if they wanted to be together after the battle. A late appearance today would doom any chance of victory sex later.

Yue Ying sat up and finally noticed the commotion. "What's going on?"

Tai looked up in time to see Cal leap off the bridge into the cold waters of the river. Stupid woman! It might be Spring but the water was coming out of the ice capped mountains and was cold enough to freeze her within minutes. "Second marriage not going well?"

Ying jumped up and ran to the bow, seeing Cal pop up from the river and begin swimming in circles, hollering. "Tai?"

"Don't worry." Tai grunted and hoisted the anchor. "How the hell her people conquered half the world….A mystery to me."

* * *

Ares snorted happily as he remembered the previous night in Cao Cao's stable. What sexy mares the Imperial cavalry had! Yes, it was defeinately going to advance his breed to be crossed with such fine girls. He flickered his ears and snorted. So where was that frisky Lotus? 

Pang Tong wondered how Cal put up with such an energetic animal. Sadly, he mused, it seemed like Ma Chao was the human incarnation of the critter. Without being kept on a short rein, the boy would do whatever he wanted. He squinted at the man sitting at his lord's table.  
"I don't remember hiring circus performers."

Zou Ci chuckled. "Funny. You must be the idiot who couldn't read the 'You die here' sign at Fallen Phoenix Slope."

Pang Tong didn't need to be reminded of that incident while sitting on the spastic Ares. "So what exactly is it that you're going to do? I thought fighting with a fan was pathetic…."

Zou Ci raised his arm and winked, sending his deck of cards flying straight at Pang Tong. The talking cloak was blasted from the saddle and landed ten feet away. The squashed-nose horse he was riding took off at a gallop. "I don't do parlor tricks, midget."

Pang Tong coughed as the dust slowly cleared. "What's wrong? Cao Cao file a restraining order?"

"Ha. Ha." Zou Ci muttered. "What's wrong? Afraid I'll overshadow you just like Kongming did?"

Pang Tong jumped to his feet and laughed. God, he loved insult matches with other strategists and wise men! It was an age-old tradition of pissing matches that made life worth living. This would be fun.

* * *

Zhao Yun rubbed his injured wrists and began to slink away. He was thankful that the scary whore and the horny Qiao were occupied and he wasn't going to test his luck. Diao Chan had used his body and he was definitely sore. He crawled away from the clearing and dared to look back for a moment. Diao Chan was now fighting Da Qiao for possession of Sima Yi as the strategist cheered them on. Something about wanting to be punished…but Zilong just didn't care. He was exhausted and wanted more than anything to be home. 

The question was, could Zhao Yun of Chang Shan get there while wearing nothing?

* * *

After being plucked out of the freezing cold river, Cal was still focused enough to struggle against Zhou Tai and demand to be left to her search. He had wrapped her in his cape to try and stem off the chilling effects of the gentle breeze from the east and turned back to shore. Only when she returned to her husband's arms did she finally break down and start sobbing. He looked back to Yue Ying and helped her out of the boat. 

"That little brat is rotten." Ying hissed and looked at the Shu Prince still sitting on the bridge with his fishing pole.

"He's too young to know…" Chao tried to defend the boy; he himself had done some stupid things when he was little with Ma Dai paying the price. Granted he never watched Dai jump off a bridge…

"Bullshit!" Ying snapped. "That kid was tutored by Kongming."

"Damn right he was." Zhou Tai grunted.

Chao was thankful that Cal's head was buried in his arms. If she had heard what Zhou Tai was alluding to it could have been disastrous. He knew how crazy she got….was she capable of killing a child? If it turned out that Zhuge Liang's plots included Liu Shan…would she retaliate? He knew the woman that he loved but the bloodlust that controlled her was still a stranger. His concern was enough to solidify his plans. Once the battle was over, they were returning home to Xi Liang.


	43. Uncertain Future

**A/N: **It's been a while since an update and I'm so sorry about that. Lost my focus on DW for a while, but I'm ready to get back to it. I do intend to update Lunar Spear first, before updating this again. I couldn't help but slip in a tribute to Battle Vixens/ Ikkitousen this chapter.

* * *

_ Bloodlust_

Chapter 43

**Uncertain Future**

* * *

Cao Cao sipped his tea as the sun rose over the horizon. "Where the hell is Sima Yi?" 

Xiahou Dun shrugged. "It's not my job to keep track of your strategist."

Cao Cao raised an eyebrow. "Why is it that being closer to her makes you so defiant?"

Dun shook his head. "Sorry."

Cao Cao stood and looked over his massive army and contemplated the situation before him. The Wu-Shu coalition was annoying, especially considering the history of the alliance. He had marched here before with a huge army and been handed defeat despite the odds. Wu and Shu were slowly whittling away at each other and he had the feeling that they would do more harm to each other as allies than enemies. "If I were to tell you I wanted to withdraw, what would you say?"

Dun scratched his beard. "Withdraw where?"

"Out of reach." Cao Cao smirked. "I want to see what Sun Quan's next stupid move will be. If he succeeded in killing Guan Yu it would have sent Liu Bei on a rampage. I want to take control of Ma Chao's lands, regain our connection to the trade routes. Let Shu and Wu test their alliance in Nanman. The heat and disease should dwindle their numbers further, don't you think?"

"You want our army intact…for what?"

"Expansion." Cao Cao turned to his cousin. "Let us start thinking beyond this current war and to the future. We'll work on assisting the Nanman in their efforts. When the smoke clears all three powers will be weak and will crumble before they can field an army to stop us."

"I suppose that has nothing to do with seeing this Goddess of Fire in your bed….."Dun queried and looked out across the fields. He squinted and then rubbed his eye. Why was Zhang He approaching them crying?

"That will simply be a pleasant benefit of our alliance." Cao Cao smiled. His daydreams were interrupted by Zhang He's sobs. "What the hell is wrong with him?"

* * *

Sun Shang Xiang inched away from her husband and closer to the brooding Yue Ying. "You think that kid did it on purpose?" 

"Without a doubt. I know my ex-husband too well." Ying gripped her scythe, how had she allowed herself to miss this? Liu Shan had been raised by Kongming and his damned disciple…

"What else is he going to do?" Shang asked herself. How far did Zhuge's hatred go? Was Liu Bei still in danger? Was the child in her womb in danger? She clenched her fists. She had lost too much family already, and she wasn't going to let some stupid kid kill any more!

Ma Chao listened to the whispers as he held his wife close. He looked around for someone who could say the right thing. All that came to his own mind was 'vengeance' and frankly it seemed like a bad suggestion when it was the heir to the throne that was the culprit. "Where's Zilong?"

Zhang Fei gurgled with untimely laughter. Everyone in the tent gave him a cold stare for his tasteless amusement. "Uh…I'll go find him."

* * *

Zhou Yu was still cursing as he dressed. Xiao pouted and reached out to fondle his testicles one last time before he put his pants on. "You're not helping!" 

"Why do you have to go? You don't even like her?"

"Unfortunately, since we are now allied with Shu, it is my concern. The Shu forces are demoralized enough with losing three of their officers, we need to keep them together for just one more battle." Zhou Yu brushed his hair quickly and huffed. "They don't have a chance of ever becoming a real country. Pang Tong is not Zhuge Liang and Ma Chao will never replace Lu Bu. We must find a way out of this alliance before they take us down with them."

"I just want to 69 again. I liked it."

"That isn't helping." He rubbed his crotch and left the tent. Lu Xun skipped towards him babbling about Gan Ning's new tattoo and someone spotting a Yetti in camp last night. Zhou Yu groaned, it was going to be a long day.

* * *

Zhao Yun ran. He could not come up with a better plan for getting back to camp than that, so he opted for the direct route. He would run, and fast. Most people he passed were startled by a naked man, others seemed to make comments that he was taller than they remembered him being, a few men made comments about his firm ass and the few women fainted. It was going well. 

"SQQQQQUUUUUUUEEEEEE!"

He winced and ran the opposite direction and came to a skidding halt. Diverting him was the tactic; he was now face to face with a group of slobbering teenage girls. So close….yet so damned far.

* * *

Ling Tong stuck his fingers in his ears and sighed. It seemed like the only solution. 

Zhou Yu ground his teeth and finally smacked Lu Xun in the head. "Shut up!"

Lu Xun finally fell silent. Why was no one else as amused by the pirate's new tattoo? He thought Ling Tong was a certified genius for doing what he did.

Zhou Yu pointed an accusatory finger at Ling Tong, "And you listen up!"

"What?" Tong asked as Lu Xun pulled his fingers out of his ears.

"Where is Lu Meng?" Zhou Yu demanded.

"I'm not his nanny." Ling Tong shrugged.

"Sulking?" Lu Xun offered. "Oh! Maybe he hurt himself laughing when he saw Gan Ning's new tattoo…."

"FIND HIM!" Zhou Yu snapped. "Am I the only one who realized that this is the morning of battle?"

"Really? I thought it was orgy of the three kingdoms from what last night sounded like..." Tong admitted. "Yeah, something that might grab attention as a graphic novel. Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Riverside Orgy."

"Let's just surrender and end the agony." Zhou Yu threw his scrolls in the air and turned to look at the enemy across the river as his subordinates scrambled to get away from him. He thought about their empire of Wu. They had suffered losses but it seemed that it made them stronger, that each Sun child had its own strength and contributed to the empire as a whole. He missed his brother dearly; he missed the days when war had actually been fun. It was hard to remember those carefree days…perhaps he should just attribute it to the stupidity of youth.

He turned his attention to the Shu camp. They could not survive the loss of their King as Wu had done not once, but twice. Yes Sun Quan was weak, but he had ambition and the loyalty of those who served his father and brother. Liu Shan….was a follower of Zhuge Liang and had just turned Shu against him by attempting to murder the half-breed child of Shu's pet assassin. So who could lead them in the event of Liu Bei's demise? Did that not define a dynasty versus a kingdom?

Ma Chao seemed to be a capable Lord; even in the southern lands of Wu the reputation of the man preceded him. Ma Chao the splendid had the respect of the Qiang and that said a hell of a lot. His cause was just and he had dedicated men and a recently acquired specialist in his wife. However, he was controlled by his temper. Guan Yu could be a decent King, even Cao Cao respected him but he lacked the charisma for leadership. He was a warrior and if he attempted to lead a country in peace he would fail. Ma Chao more than likely would fail as well. So who did that leave that could rule a country that was not at war? Pang Tong?

He smiled at the thought of the beggar tactician wearing a crown. He knew the true answer and he couldn't help but savor the irony. The only one who could rule successfully would be Sun Shang Xiang. Unfortunately it was her leadership that Wu needed at the moment. The key to the end of the alliance was in the unification of Wu and Shu. There would be no bitterness if she united the two kingdoms, the loyalty to her would endure and would forge the bonds of the strongest kingdom China had ever seen. He looked over at his King and his bodyguard. Sun Quan continued to pluck fuzz out of his robe, but Zhou Tai shifted his eyes to meet that of the famed strategist. Their eyes locked and for the first time in a while Zhou Yu smiled. The two kingdoms were well on their way to becoming one.

* * *

Zou Ci ran his shriveled finger down the scroll and made a few clicking noises. "You're lucky I came along." 

"Sure." Pang Tong rolled his eyes.

"Tell me about your officers."

"You tell me about my officers and I'll see how right you are." Pang Tong stuck out his tongue and then began to doodle a naked woman on the scroll before him.

"Liu Bei is too dedicated to his people, which put him in danger at Chang Ban. He should be protected; he rides into danger too much. You, you're hardly useful in battle but unpredictable and everyone underestimates you. No Kongming, but you'll do."

Pang Tong shrugged. "Can't please everyone."

"Guan Yu is good, but it seems he's always in the wrong place. When he's actually fights for you it's worthwhile but how often does that happen? Then there's Zhang Fei who should be gagged. He is offensive, and I don't mean that in a tactical sense. Zhao Yun is overrated and Ma Chao is out of control."

"Maybe you should tell them that." Tong dared.

"Lady Sun is a good fighter, but can't be counted on to be where she needs to be. The princess doesn't take orders well. Quinirius is the worst General you have and I'm surprised you bother pretending she leads her unit at all. Guan Ping is young, but will obviously die with his dad one day. Who else….."

Pang Tong yawned. "I'm sorry were you still talking?"

"Huang Zhong needs to realize no one is discriminating against anyone old in this time and place and he's frankly not that damned good. I think Xiahou Yuan was much better with a bow, even if he is dead. Wei Yan is a ticking time bomb and Yue Ying….well. Can we possibly get Lady Sun to redress her? I dare say it might raise morale…."

"You can't raise anything on your own anymore…" Pang Tong made a mental note to tell Zhou Tai that the disgusting old tattoo guy was dreaming about his new wife.

"Liu Shan…just killed a child. Mind you that kid was going to grow up and be worse than Lu Bu….still…for Kongming's pupil to be so stupid to piss off a bloodthirsty assassin and her faithful justice-obsessed stud…."

"If you have so many bad things to say, why join us?"

"Cao Cao must be stopped. His rule will take this country backwards, allowing the people to be dominated. Sun Quan has no ideals, other than what clothes he wants to take from his mom's closet. Liu Bei has a cause, that is why he must win."

Pang Tong added some nipple jewelry to his drawing and refrained to comment. Sadly the creepy old guy was right about his army. They were fighting battle after battle without resting and reinforcing and there really wasn't much to reinforce with anymore. Pang De was a general of worth, but Liu Bei confessed that he had already returned home to protect his own province and not Cheng Du. That left Cheng Du's defense in the hands of Zhang Fei's daughter and Guan Yu's two young sons. He knew the Guans were dedicated, but had yet to even meet this Xing Cai chick. If she was like her dad, they were all in trouble.

"Fix your army before it is annihilated. You rely too heavy upon your officers to give you wins and they have many failings."

"We all do."

* * *

Wei Yan ambled down the street and took his time making his way back to camp. He wanted to survey the enemy by coming from a different direction, but it seemed Cao Cao was not doing anything different than last time he looked. It made no difference to him, eventually there would be a battle and he would have his chance. He looked over as Huang Zhong whooped at him, trying to get his comrade's attention. He moved towards his elderly friend but the masked warrior's eyes were diverted to a man who stood stark naked in the center of town. He sighed and began to run to the trapped soldier. 

"Damn…" Huang Zhong hissed as he noticed the situation. "And they think he's a brilliant general?"

"Stupid….dragon." Wei Yan mumbled as he scooped up Zhao Yun and pushed through the crowd. Several fangirls fainted at the sight. Several yaoi artists began to sketch the overlooked pairing. The masked general of Shu trotted over to his geriatric friend and muttered, "Let's….go"

Huang Zhong was surprised to see one fangirl fan herself and whistle. "Yes! Stake your claim on that meat General Huang!" Sometimes words could be genuinely disturbing, especially those out of the mouth of a fangirl.

* * *

"Cao Cao…he plans to slither away." Zou Ci mused. 

"What was that? Dying to get your shriveled hands on his snake?" Pang Tong quipped.

"Sorry midget, did you say something?" Zou Ci frowned and looked back at the quirky sage.

"Having trouble hearing me, eh? I suppose if you're ten years older than god we should expect that."

Liu Bei patted Hex Mark's neck and watched the sprawling army of Wei begin it's slow and methodical retreat. It was odd, why would Cao Cao do this? He had to know Shu was weak now, barely able to field enough men for his generals to command without being demoted to Colonels. Perhaps he was unwilling to fight another battle against the allied forces near a river? Or perhaps it was a ruse, he was trying to provoke them into pursuing him and then he would attack? So many questions and no answers. Then again, his strategists should have been providing those answers. "What is he up to?"

"Looks like a retreat to me…yup. I'd call that a retreat." Pang Tong nodded. "Too bad he's got Cao Ren's division as rear guard, I'd hate to tangle with that. I do wish he'd pretend like he was in a hurry to go somewhere…it might be fun to send out our cavalry to harass him."

"He wants to leave us to destroy ourselves." Zou Ci snorted. "Considering how ridiculous Wu is, I think it's a brilliant plan. Sun Quan will jump at the excuse to revoke the alliance."

Liu Bei frowned. Damn, this was worse than he thought. Morale at home was horrible and there was a war waiting for him with the Nanman. Wu eyed his kingdom like a Hawk eyed a field mouse. A fight with Cao Cao actually seemed like the most pleasant option.

* * *

"Skank." 

"Harpie"

"Whore"

"Bitch"

The King of Nanman took another bite of the oxen leg in his hand and watched his wife and the little girl defending Cheng Du battle. It was hot. Damned hot. "Sweetie, rip that barmaid outfit off her and roll her in the mud!"

Zhu Rong whipped her boomerang at the squeaky little child in an effort to take out her frustrations. Her husband was a worthless oaf and if she didn't need his army and the half dozen 'king's' that made up that army, she'd have killed him years ago. Unfortunately the Neanderthal and his inbred savage family was all she had. That would change, when she took over Shu and made their army her own. Not to mention all the delicious men that came with the small empire…she could finally enjoy sex instead of pretending she was just riding an elephant.

Xing Cai, Zhang Fei's only daughter and the protector of Cheng Du, stood firm. She would not let down her father, she would not let down Lord Liu Bei and she would not let some backwoods blond bitch burn her city. She wished that Pang De was here, or for that matter anyone. Anyone other than Xu Shu, Guan Xing and Guan Suo. Someone who knew what they were doing.

* * *

Lu Xun scrambled towards the familiar scruffy face. Lu Meng had been missing and obviously hadn't heard about Gan Ning's new tattoo. "MASTER LU!!!!" 

Lu Xi perked up and then started to scream. He was hungry, tired and missed his mom.

Lu Meng rocked the child and tried to shush it to sleep. He smiled when it actually worked. Rumors around the camp were the Ma Chao was having a hell of a time taking care of the toddler and was shaping up to be the most inept parent of Shu. Difficult considering the competition. He looked down at Lu Xun who seemed in awe…there was no limit to what would amaze the young strategist.

"Master Lu…you're a natural!"

"I'm beginning to think I'm one of the only responsible adults in this war." Meng admitted.

"Mmm…" Lu Xun nodded. Why was it that he had never seen this sensitive side of Lu Meng before?

"DAMMIT!" Zhou Yu screamed. "Where the hell have you been? Don't you realize there's a damned war on! The enemy is retreating and it would have been nice if I had a cavalry commander to pursue him!"

"But I thought you said it was a trap…" Ling Tong muttered.

Zhou Yu stopped as a screaming child interrupted his tantrum. He blinked. A thousand different ideas ran through his mind at once as he looked at Lu Bu's only child in the arms of Lu Meng. He smiled, knowing Wu now had the upper hand.

* * *

"How many times have you lost this child now?" Zou Ci asked. 

"Shut up." Ma Chao snapped. "I won't have you talking like that to my wife or about my son."

"Son? Hmmm…you don't fall far from the tree yourself do you? Your father wasn't smart enough to stay away from the capital after Cao Cao sent a personal invite….I suppose it would be too much to expect you to learn from what Lu Bu did to his adopted fathers…."

Cal laughed. "I'm familiar with your tactics, Zou Ci. I myself have used similar strategies against Sun Quan. I will not allow you to anger him and send him on a rampage, only to claim you told the truth later. If you were a warrior of worth, you'd go after Cao Cao yourself instead of tricking others to do so."

Zou Ci snorted. "I'm so glad you can laugh when you now owe Wu such a huge favor."

Pang Tong chuckled. "What's this I hear about Zhao Yun losing his virginity?"

Zhao Yun hissed a curse as the gathering looked towards him. He knew the sage was looking for a distraction, but why did it have to be at his expense. "I hate you all."

"Let a Qiao pop his cherry too!" Huang Zhong raised his glass of musou wine in a toast. "Way to go down in style…."

"Ha!" Wei Yan chuckled at the pun.

"What about Diao Chan?" Ma Chao asked. " I thought you…"

"I was raped." Zhao Yun snorted indignantly. "Damned fangirls get more violent by the day."

"Raped? Can a man really be raped?" Liu Bei queried.

"I'll dedicate my life to answering that for you my lord." Pang Tong bowed. "I pledge to fight off any beautiful woman that tries to molest me…."

"Wow! Chin Lien, Da Qiao and Diao Chan. DAMN!" Zhang Fei snorted. "No wonder you never got laid, you go for a marathon of sex that keeps you happy for years!"

"Who's Chin Lien?" Guan Yu stroked his beard and looked over at his brother.

"YOU!" Zhao Yun pointed the accusatory finger. "You put that thing in my tent?"

"No." Zhang Fei smirked. "I bought her for you. She's yours….forever."

* * *

"Look!" Yue Ying ran up to her fellow Tigress Generals and giggled. "I found new books!" 

"Who is it this time?" Cal asked.

"Hopefully something with Xiahou Dun or Zhang Liao. I'm in the mood for some naughty Wei comics." Sun Shang Xiang sighed dreamily

Cal shuttered. "God….just don't show me."

"No! It's better!" Yue Ying flashed the new scroll at them. "The boys are big-breasted, ass-kicking chicks!"

"AH! That's my brother!" Sun Shang Xiang yelped as Yue Ying showed her the newest scroll.

"Oh wait till you see the chapter when Zhou Yu bangs your mom!" Yue Ying giggled

"WHAT!?!"

* * *


	44. Difficult Decisions

Bloodlust

_Chapter 44_

**Difficult Decisions**

* * *

"You slut."

Zhao Yun jumped when he heard a voice and then breathed a sigh of relief when he looked to see Cal at his tent flap. "That damned Chin Lien is still unaccounted for, don't scare me like that."

Cal rubbed his exposed arm sympathetically. "We'll pack her up and send her to Cao Cao."

"Promise?" He sat down and sighed. "Maybe I shouldn't be so picky."

"Picky?" Cal queried. "She has mange."

"She is technically all I have."

"Are you always this whiney after sex?" Cal frowned.

"You're lucky Cal. You all are. Everyone has someone to go home to and children…I have my horse and a disintegrating concubine."

"Zilong, did it ever occur to you that you might have to work a little to get a woman? You are a bit too obsessive about your job and that leaves little time for a relationship with anyone outside of this army." Cal sighed. "You should have shown more interest when Shang was rolling around at your feet like a cat in heat."

Zhao Yun grinned. "We could have had a double date with you and Lu Meng."

Slowly their smiles faded as it dawned on them both how different things were now. A country torn into so many pieces was now more solidified and divided into thirds. Armies that once worked together as allies were now at war or in fragile alliances. Once carefree young warriors with a common cause, they were now fighting for their lives and wanting more than just an ideal. They had grown up and the cost of failure was now so much higher.

Zhao Yun broke the silence. "I am very happy for you. You both deserve to be happy…"

"He wants to go home….now." She said quietly. "Pang De left for XiLiang months ago to aid in the defense of the province while Chao is away. The man was Chao's mentor, his teacher for all his life, and when he expresses his disappointment in his Lord's absence…"

"You go home." He nodded, knowing she just didn't want to say it. She didn't want to obey orders, she didn't want to leave what had become her home and she most certainly didn't want to leave the security of her family here when she know how the country felt about a foreigner. He did not envy her; Ma Dai had made it very clear that his cousin was the most eligible bachelor in the Province. Cal would not be well received. Normally she would not be bothered in the least, she would probably enjoy it, but now she had a husband and son that she loved and they were all she cared about. They would bare the brunt of the disdain. "It won't be that bad."

"I've been in worse places…but it was just me. Xi doesn't deserve that."

"Chao adopted him." Zhao Yun knew that would only make things worse. 'Adopted' and 'Lu Bu' were two words that were not compatible. "He won't let either of you down."

"Our place is here though. Unless we stand together…hell there isn't much to keep us together anymore. Everyone is dead. This Zou Ci is an ass and no one wants to hear their horoscope…they want a brilliant plan. Tong can do it, but there's only so much you can do with half an army." Cal shook her head. "If we are to survive as a kingdom we need to stay together. This is what Cao Cao is exploiting. He will attack XiLiang and we will go running home, weakening ourselves and Shu."

"Since when have you cared what the odds were?"

"I have a family." She said and saw his pained expression. "They always told us in training that the surest way to failure and death was to get attached. Too bad it only makes you want it all the more knowing how unworthy or foolish it is to love and be normal. I know it. Lu Bu knew it. Yet we both decided to sacrifice it all for the chance of a real life…even if it's for a little while. It's worth it."

"You're better than he was." Zhao Yun looked her in the eye. "You know that."

"I can't hate him, he gave me my son." She shrugged. "He made me worthy of Chao. Without him I would have never seen what I could have been had I only fought for myself. He is dead, which is where he belongs. Our son will not follow in our footsteps; he will be a good man."

"What about you and Chao?" He asked curiously. "Is there another child on the way?"

"He wants one pretty badly; he wants the family he lost. Now isn't the right time." She had to wonder how much Chao had discussed with his friend. He had mentioned the topic the previous night and she had quickly shot him down. She couldn't be left at home pregnant again, not now when they needed every person on the field. Even a lousy officer like her was becoming more valuable by the day. She knew that the reasoning was rational; however it was not the true reason for her lack of interest in procreating. She couldn't protect Xi, how could she have another child knowing that?

"It may never be the right time." Yun patted her knee.

"Right back at ya." She said with a cocked eyebrow. "Stop hiding behind your job and do something for yourself! I don't mean fucking every unwed woman either, I mean find one that you want to risk your life for. Someone to make all this worth it. Do something stupid for a change."

"Without you here to help me, I'm doomed." Zhao Yun sighed.

"Then come with us." She poked him in the ribs. "Please?"

He hugged her and sighed. The future looked very bleak. Ma Chao, Cal and Ma Dai returning home meant he was the only cavalry unit. He knew his numbers were laughable and there were no reinforcements in Cheng Du. For her, a battle with Cao Cao with only four commanders looked hopeless. "Maybe Liu Bei can change his mind."

* * *

"I have made my decision."

Liu Bei found the change in Ma Chao remarkable. He was shaping up to be a formidable lord, perhaps even surpassing his father. This young man had once rushed into battle recklessly, hell bent on vengeance, but now was making decisions for his people. "I understand your need to defend your home, but this is what Cao Cao is hoping for."

"I don't care what he wants, I care about my home. I need to be there."

"You joined Shu, you must…"

"I am Lord of XiLiang first and a Tiger General of Shu second." Chao took a deep breath. "I am sorry, but I have neglected my duties for too long."

"Chao, please reconsider."

"We're leaving in the morning."

"Good luck then." Liu Bei sighed defeated. He knew this was a losing battle before the conversation began.

"We'll return order and reinforce our army, and then we can return to assist you again…"

"Go home Chao." Liu Bei smiled. "Rebuild your life."

"I'm sorry." Chao let out a sigh; he hated to be the indignant lord with Liu Bei. The man was a friend, but he couldn't have unwavering resolve when dealing with a friend.

"I understand." Liu Bei squeezed his arm. "Just be careful."

Chao nodded and went back to his horse. He scratched her neck then swung into the saddle. He was excited to go home, especially now that he had so much to be proud of.

Sun Shang Xiang cocked an eyebrow as Ma Chao rode away. He wasn't in a hurry like he normally was and her husband was standing by himself, thinking. She ground her teeth knowing what had just transpired. She stormed up to her husband and snapped. "You didn't!"

"I couldn't deny him that; it would have done no good anyhow." He winced as she punched him in the arm. "Sunny!"

"We're at war! You're the King! You can't just let him ride off because he's homesick!"

"He'll keep Cao Cao distracted and rebuild his forces. We have the Nanman to contend with at home and we will need time to deal with them and fresh troops when the battle is over."

"Bullshit." She growled. "Don't try and pass off that lame excuse on me."

Pang Tong sauntered up to the royal couple, knowing the future of his country was being discussed. He had no intention of saving his King, but had ever intention of getting away from Zou Ci. "Hey kids, what's the problem? Discussing baby names?"

"I'm having the baby, I'll name it." Shang dismissed the ridiculous notion of discussion in regards to the name of her child.

"Uh…Sunny…"

"Tong, can you talk some sense into him before he throws away our country? He just let Ma Chao go without a bit of protest."

"Well, I don't think anyone can really order Chao to do anything. You just sort of agree with him and try to trick him into something else later." Pang Tong scratched his eyebrow with his staff. "So he misses his mommy does he?"

"Fine, I'll fix this. Try not to dismiss any more of our remaining generals while I'm gone." Shang spun on her heels and marched off in the direction of the cavalry encampment.

"Hmmm." Pang Tong smiled underneath his mask.

"Despite my selfish needs to have them here, Chao is correct. He does need to go home." Liu Bei shrugged.

"Eh, we can manage without him. Let Shang stir them up a bit, it might make him more aware of how much he's needed here. Home isn't always what it's cracked up to be anyhow."

"Well, Master Strategist, what do we do now?"

"Go home."

"What of Wu?"

"Oh don't worry about them; Zhou Yu has a million different schemes ready to stab us in the back."

"Wonderful."

"I don't need that many." Tong chuckled. "I just have one that will work. I'll take it up with your wife however; she seems to be in charge now."

"How bad off are we Tong?"

"We're losing Chao, Ma Dai and Cal. Pang De's already left, which means the Guan and Zhang kids have probably torn up Cheng Du already. Yue Ying will be of tremendous help in Wu as a diplomat, but we still lose her for battle and strategy. Wei Yan is in love and Huang Zhong will soon be in deep shit. Zou Ci's magic will come in handy, if no one kills him first. We still have the core standbys of Guan Yu, Zhang Fei and Zhao Yun. Eh, I'd say it's the usual odds."

"Then let's march home tomorrow."

"Absolutely. Those Naman chicks don't wear clothes!"

* * *

Sun Quan picked lint out of the fluffy collar on his robe. "Do you have a plan?"

Zhou Yu narrowed his eyes at his lord. "I _always _have a plan."

"Mother wants my sister home…with her. She has never forgiven father for sending Shang so far away."

Zhou Yu rolled his eyes. Of course he wanted a plan that made his mother happy. Wasn't it good enough that they 'retired' Huang Gai for Lady Wu's personal pleasure? It made him wrinkle his nose in disgust. Sun Jian was one thing, but Huang Gai? "I do have a plan, sir."

"As Master Strategist, you better." Sun Quan looked over at him. "You can't let that ugly midget best Wu."

"I won't." Zhou Yu assured him and stood. There was something he needed to discuss with Zhou Tai and his new wife. He knew the woman was perfectly aware of the dangers of Liu Shan, so it was time to find out how extensive Kongming's plans were. Then he could go have a conversation with Shu's Queen and see what they could do about the boy.

* * *

"You coward."

Ma Chao rolled his eyes. "Is that the best you can do?"

Sun Shang Xiang promptly seated her foot in his left ass cheek and the mighty warrior of the North yelped like a woman. "Homesick momma's boy! You know damned well you don't stand a chance of holding back Cao Cao!"

Ma Chao rubbed his now bruised ass. "I'm sorry, how many times did you return home to see your mom when it was an obvious ploy by Zhou Yu. You almost killed your husband."

"Shu didn't need me then." She kicked him in the other ass cheek. "Quit your damned whining about losing your family! You're not the only one who's lost someone to this war."

Ma Chao was now out of options. If he turned his body to face her, he opened himself up to a frontal assault and a kick to the testicles was not optional. He rubbed both tender cheeks and wondered if she was attempting to keep him from home by making it impossible to sit in the saddle. Lotus had already wandered off to keep a watchful eye on the squawking Lu Xi so his only ally was preoccupied. The child ran up to the mare and hugged her leg while she groomed him. He wondered where his wife had disappeared to. "If Jian Ye was in danger of being conquered, you'd run off with half our army to save it."

She contemplated kicking him in the nuts, but thought about Cal's reaction when her new husband was out of action. She glared at him. "I'd have enough men with me to win, plus I'd take over my brother's kingdom and make it worthwhile. You're just going home to die."

"I am not." He snapped. "I had fewer men and less officers at Tong Gate…"

"You had Cal and Lu Bu." Shang recalled. "I think that helped a little."

"I'm not staying so I can vacation with you all in the tropics of Nanman. I have a duty to my people, whom I have neglected, to return home and restore order. You have no idea what XiLiang is like; between the Western traders, the tribes of the North and Wei to the East we are alone and always have been. I must return home to help my people."

"Did you look across that river the other day? Didn't you see what Cao Cao fielded against us? He has a large, fresh army ready to annihilate you. You want to take that on?"

"I will." He snorted and stared down at her. "So why don't you go concern yourself with winning the war against the Nanman and coming to assist me instead of bitching about how selfish I am to try and retain what little territory Shu has?"

Ma Dai was the most skilled Shu officer in the art of arriving at the wrong time and in the wrong place. He rode up to his cousin to report the status of their army and instead fell silent. "What's wrong with your ass?"

"Shut up Dai." Chao refused to break off the stare he now held with the Shu queen.

"We're ready to ride, whenever you are." Dai announced and turned his horse back to camp.

"If we lose Cheng Du because you couldn't ride ahead and secure the city, then I'll do more than just kick your ass." Shang threatened

"Send Zhao Yun, he's more than capable."

"He is our only cavalry unit now and thus can only be utilized for scouting, Idiot." She fumed.

"If you really want to be the mighty queen of Shu, why don't you go take your father's kingdom away from that pussy you call a brother?"

"In due time." Shang's face softened. "Just keep yourselves alive until then. I don't want to lose any more friends."

Chao nodded suddenly understanding her distress. "You all better be alive and well when we come back, or else…."

"Cal will get jealous if you tell me to feel your wrath." She wiped away a tear. This wasn't fair. She wanted her friends with her when she had the baby. "You better win."

* * *

Wei Yan looked into the mirror and grunted. "This…Better?"

"Yes." Kwan Jun was thrilled with her makeover. "Now I can be assured that no one but me will touch you."

Wei Yan was never really big on attire. He liked his old clothes, they were broken in and comfy. However his new girlfriend was a bit concerned about other woman checking out his body. He didn't care if the loincloth was so thin you could see through it, why would anyone else? "No one…did."

"Let's keep it that way. You're my man, now." She silently cursed herself now that she wanted to strip him down and ride him again. The attempt to conceal his body also added a few more layers to his wardrobe that she would have to peel off.

"Weird...hair." He touched the dreadlocks attached to his new mask that bordered on a helmet. He should have never told her about his injury, now she was extra careful to protect the vulnerable part of his head. As stuck in routine as he was, he really did like the attention a lot. Someone finally cared enough to protect him.

"Quit playing with it and start playing with me."

* * *

Zhuge Jin continued to read his brother's notes in the worn and loved copy of Art of War. His eyebrows rose as he came across a few lines that were very very interesting. So his brother had done more than just corrupt Liu Shan, he had baited Sima Yi into assisting in the child's development! _Wow, Kongming, even I underestimated you!_

He was now being very cautious with his activities. No one questioned his loyalty to Wu, though he noticed a change in Zhou Yu. It was understanding that the Wu genius would not be comfortable with the brother of his nemesis so close, but it had never caused problems before. He was well established with Wu, being the older brother of the once hermit strategist was of no concern to anyone before. Sun Quan seemed at appreciate his administration skills and it wasn't a problem until his brother became a traitor.

Sure he had filtered information to Wei. It was a way to help keep the balance between enemies. When they needed Wei to focus on someone else, he'd feed them information and then Wu could attack. He had to wonder how much time he really had, especially

now that his sister-in-law was married to Sun Quan's bodyguard.

* * *

"Zilong, I want you to meet my cousin, Sun Ren Er." Shang announced, now free of any obligation she had to her to introduce her to the Shu bachelor bishie.

Zhao Yun looked up at the young woman who batted her eyelashes and smiled. She was taller than Sun Shang Xiang with long hair done up in a bun and she had a very feminine aura. "Hello."

"She's coming with us to Cheng Du, my mom's orders." Shang sighed and sat down. "Apparently I need someone to knit blankets and booties for my baby."

Zhao Yun's wasn't prepared for the young woman to whip the hair pins from her bun and brandish them as weapons. He looked to Shang curiously, she seemed to be used to this behavior. He then realized these were the woman's knitting needles. "Do you knit with those or are they weapons?"

"Both." Sun Ren Er grinned. He was handsome, but no where near the man that Gan Ning was. Still he had an innocent quality, the kind of innocence that made a Sun woman hungry.

"Leave it to Wu to fight with anything and everything inappropriate for battle." Guan Yu mused, but didn't say it loud enough for his queen or her young cousin to hear.

"I'm excited to see the West! I've never been outside of Jian Ye…except for the craft show in Ru Nan!" Ren Er sat down beside her cousin and smiled. "I can't wait to visit the market and bazaar!"

"So kiddo, any other reason you're tramping around with us?" Pang Tong asked.

Zou Ci had his cards on the table and tapped at one. "This plan is too transparent to be Zhou Yu; Sun Quan must have done this on his own."

Shang shrugged. "Quannie likes to make mom happy."

Ren Er laughed. "I'm not all that interested in spying. I really just want to find some yarn in the bazaar from a rare Wooly Nanman Elephant."

"You want to make something out of Meng Huo's pubic hair?" Zhang Fei frowned.

"No!" The Wu teenager chirped, amused by the joke. "There really is a Wooly Elephant in Nanman Territory!"

"Meng Huo." Guan Yu reinforced his brother's statement. He wondered why this chick was so naïve.

"Okay, I'll just have to prove it to you then." Ren Er said indignantly.

"You plan on taking down the Nanman King with a pair of knitting needles?" Zhao Yun asked.

"Were you this skeptical of my cousin when you first met her?" Ren Er sat up straight and huffed in annoyance.

"No, he was running away from her and had no time to see what she was fighting with." Zhang Fei recalled.

"I did not."

"That's right, you were late for the war and had to kiss a lot of ass to make up for it." Guan Yu smirked.

"You were tardy." Guan Ping snorted and then choked on his wine.

Zhao Yun just ground his teeth and began to open his mouth to formulate a retort that would only cause him more trouble, it was then that he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up at his sworn sister.

"Wouldn't have mattered anyhow. I showed you all up in officer kill counts anyhow." Cal squeezed Zilong's shoulder and wondered how well he'd fare without her help.

"And I outshone you all at Shi Shui Gate!" Sun Shang Xiang grinned.

"You were both fighting for the wrong side." Guan Ping stuck out his tongue.

"Now kids, this isn't supposed to be a competition." Pang Tong stood and stretched. As his arms reached to the sky for the exercise, he slipped his staff under Zou Ci's plate and flipped it up onto the man's lap. "_This_ is supposed to be a competition!"

"Food fight!" Zhang Fei roared and immediately smashed a bowl of Lo Mien noodles into Guan Yu's beard.

"So much for being low on supplies." Zhao Yun mumbled and ducked under the table.

Cal helped him flip the table over and together they used the barricade to defend themselves from the onslaught of meatbuns. "Stop being such a hard ass, waste the food and enjoy it!"

Pang Tong crawled over to them and giggled. "Wanna know a secret?"

"Sure." Zhao Yun figured there wasn't much to lose.

"These aren't our supplies." Tong slipped his staff into a roast chicken that lay in the line of fire.

Zhao Yun grinned. Even if it was a silly plan, they would undoubtedly waste a ton of Wu's supplies and hamper an attempt to follow them during their retreat. "You're not such a bad strategist Tong."

"You're not such a bad whore, Zilong."

"Too bad we can't get Wu to play with us…" Cal mused as she watched the chicken Tong had launched over the table arch in the air and get pierced by an arrow. "Looks like Huang Zhong is back."

"Nah. Zhong is too busy trying to get an erection with that woman of his. He lost his Tiger amulet and without it, it takes him all damned day to get up." Tong winked at her. "That fletching was made with cardinal feathers. It's probably from my little shadow Lu Xun."

"Here to protect the fair maiden Sun Ren Er…." Zhao Yun gave the cloaked sage an appreciative smile. "Damn Shiyuan, you are good."

"Wait till I tell you how I destroyed Wei." Pang Tong poked the warrior with his staff. "But that's for later, keep fighting!"

Cal looked through a knothole in the table and smiled. Zou Ci was lying unconscious in a pile of meatbuns. Someone lost the popularity contest.

"Gan Ning!" Lu Xun howled. "No!"

Pang Tong, Zhao Yun and Cal popped their heads over the edge of the turned table to take a look. Lu Xun was running towards the pirate, his arms flailing the international sign of distress. The Wu pirate was about to launch an entire wagonload of meatbuns off a catapult. The wagon was already strapped to the catapult bucket so that it wouldn't rain down on the Shu encampment along with the much valued supplies. However the thoughtfulness ended there. Thousands of meatbuns were suddenly airborne and flying towards their target.

"Looks like enough to feed a brigade." Zhao Yun chuckled.

"You worthless sea shit! Is that the best you can do?" Cal suddenly hollered to encourage him.

Tong grinned. "This is going to be fantastic."

"No Ning! NOOOOOO!" Lu Xun screeched, realizing that nearly a weeks worth of rations were within the pirate's reach. He ran up to Gan Ning and grabbed at him, "Ning, our supplies…"

The pirate punched the young strategist in the face. "NEW TATOO!" he yelped. "Don't scratch it!"

Lu Xun watched another wagonload of meatbuns go airborne as he fell backwards into the grass. His world swirled around him and he blacked out.

"Sorry kid, but that hurt!" Ning hoped his new tattoo looked as awesome as everyone seemed to think. "Okay boys, let's get some variety in there. These stupid meatbuns seem to come apart in the air. For the glory of Wu!!!"

* * *

"Your strategist is quite unpredictable." Zhou Tai had his arms folded and was watching the food fight from a distance. His lovely wife was clinging to his arm and licking his bicep.

"He always did make Kongming scream 'No Fair!'." Yue Ying shifted her eyes to the chaotic scene. Zhou Yu was on horseback shouting for a ceasefire, furious that his generals would fall for such a ploy. "Way to go Shiyuan."

"Does it ease your conscience any to see his ability?" Zhou Tai couldn't resist a gentle kiss to her forehead as Ling Tong joined the fight. So the young man was planning on taking out Gan Ning with a lamb roast?

"A little." She nuzzled him and smiled. "I'll just have to be a better spy than a strategist!"

"Good thing I don't talk in my sleep."

She ran her hand under his cape to grab his firm ass. "I'll just have to keep trying to win you over to our side with sex. It is my duty."

Zhou Tai chuckled as Zhou Yu was knocked out of the saddle by a large chunk of raw meat. "I'm inclined to let you try."

* * *

Xing Cai squatted behind a crate and surveyed the situation. She had fought to a draw with Zhu Rong, and the barbarian queen broke off the fight to go kick her husband in the genitals. So she seized the opportunity to rally the men and withdraw behind the outer walls of Cheng Du. Xu Shu hollered at her that it was a foolish move and that they needed to push back the enemy, not sacrifice their defenses.

"I can see your panties." Guan Suo chuckled.

"Shut up." She hit the boy. He was like a brother to her and she hated that the only people here were family.

"I'll lead an ambush team through the woods." Guan Xing announced. "We can set fire to their supplies."

"And the smell of roasted food will draw away all their officers!" Guan Suo nodded. "Brilliant!"

"We need help." Xing Cai admitted. "What happened to the couriers?"

"They rode away." Guan Suo shrugged. "Xu Shu said Fa Zheng could be coming to assist."

"Could." Guan Xing reiterated. "He's probably smart enough to stay where he's at."

"How hard can it really be to outsmart them?" Xing Cai asked.

"They don't have a strategy; they're counting on numbers to win. And they are winning." Xing replied.

"Liao Hua and Deng Zhi…maybe they could…" Xing Cai muttered

"Abandon their duty to defend their cities and come die with us?" Guan Xing stood up and allowed the panicked Xu Shu to locate his band of young officers. "We just do what we can and wait for help."

"When you are all ready to quit playing hide and seek….perhaps you would like to join me for a war council." Xu Shu growled as he peered down at the youngsters hiding behind the crate. After this battle was over, he was going to leave all the babysitting to Zhao Yun.

* * *

"Are we there yet?" Xu Zhu whined and his horse groaned.

Sima Yi hissed. "No. Shut up!"

"I need a long night in the harem." Cao Cao rubbed his temples. Damned headache!

"I think we're being followed." Zhang He positioned himself between Cao Cao and Sima Yi. "The Yeti is here…I smell her."

Xiahou Dun rode behind the high command and was lost in his thoughts. He had been up late planning an assault on Ma Chao's territory with the others and it seemed there would be no rest for him. Immediately upon their arrival home in Xu Chang, the army would divide and march off to start a war on the Western front.

It baffled them all how Shu could still be in existence. The always small kingdom seemed to get smaller by the day and yet they held on. Now they would be truly tested as Wei finally found an ally in the Nanman. Wu didn't need much of an excuse to sever ties and Sima Yi was confident in his ability to trick Zhou Yu into destroying both kingdoms at once. Damned strategists, they took all the fun out of war.

"Are we there yet?"

"My lord, may I suggest that we send Xu Zhu to Nanman to aid the rebellion?" Sima Yi spat.

"They can't afford to feed him." Cao Cao admitted.

"Who the hell is that?" Xiahou Dun growled as he spotted a newcomer wearing regal blue trotting down the road towards them on a black stallion.

"Father, it is about time you arrived."

Cao Cao wondered which one of his stupid children this could be. Then Sima Yi chuckled and answered the question for him.

"Looks like Cao Pi's balls have finally dropped." The Wei strategist cackled.

"Pi?" Cao Cao looked over his heir and snorted. "What the hell happened to you?"

"His mother more than likely." Xiahou Dun shook his head. So the little spineless shit finally figured out his place.

"Mmm.." Cao Cao noticed something different, something wicked. He knew Lady Bian was a skilled woman, she had made sure her boy was ready to take over his kingdom. It probably also had something to do with Zhen Ji being in his bed and not Pi's.

"Wow." Zhen Ji almost dropped her flute. Was this really her husband? Handsome sienna locks tumbled over his sculpted face instead of being tied up in a generic headpiece. He now wore royal clothes, not just the armor of some worthless subgeneral, and his weapon was long and imposing.

Cao Pi liked the reaction he got. It was one of respect. He looked at his wife and sneered. "Zhen Ji, how is it that you are wearing even less clothes than you were when I last saw you?"

Tingles of arousal went down her spine. He seemed to have that dangerous edge, like his father, now. "I…got a new dress."

"Dress. Hardly. You look like a whore."

Cao Cao was now certain that Lady Bian had a part in this transformation. It was her that had shown him the excitement of bondage and pain. He had to wonder exactly how many of his concubines she had sacrificed to teach the brat how to be a man. "So, does this mean you're actually planning on acting like a prince now?"

"Father, I intend to act like a King."

* * *

AN: Long time coming, I know. I hope to get back on a roll again. I had to reread the entire story to remember what I was planning. Good news is I want to finish this one up, bad news is I saw screenshots of DW6 and I am drooling over Xiahou Dun. So it's an update for Lunar Spear next and then back to this one.

Not my best chapter, but my transition chapters never are. Thanks for your loyalty.


	45. A New War

Bloodlust

**Chapter 45**

_A New War_

* * *

Zhou Yu crossed his arms and looked at the hunched over form of Zhuge Jin. "I'm told you have something to tell me."

The elder Zhuge jumped and looked behind him at the Wu strategist. "Yes…I was looking through my brother's notes…"

"Does Yue Ying know you have these?"

"Yes." He picked up the book and showed Zhou Yu. "She gave it to me upon my request."

"She did not see it contained valuable information?"

"My sister-in-law was not exactly in tune with Kongming's thoughts. She probably just assumed they were old notes. He used a diluted ink so the notations would look aged." Jin opened the book and pointed to the said notes.

Zhou Yu hated the bastard more in death than life. At least while he was alive he didn't know everything the man was doing. In death it was becoming all the more evident that Zhuge Liang's plans were extensive and brilliant. "I have to imagine she would have shown Pang Tong."

"Even then…"Jin cleared his throat. "I think it's something a brother, someone he spent his childhood with, would see through. Not a classmate or a sexually frustrated spouse…..not anyone he was guarded around. They never knew him like I did. I knew him before he became a hermit."

"Very well." Zhou Yu couldn't argue. He sat down and looked at the man. "So what did you find?"

"Liu Shan is meant to kill Liu Bei, not Lu Xi. I think what happened, it was a distraction. I haven't figured out how he knew Sima Yi would try that…but nonetheless it's not the point. Kongming and Jiang Wei tutored Liu Shan to kill his father."

"Jiang Wei defected from Wei." Zhou Yu mused and saw the perplexed look on Jin's face. "The connection you were looking for. Nevermind. You're positive this is what he was working towards? That this isn't just a smoke screen?"

"No. This is what he had planned. Along with a million other things….but this is the most important to us."

"Yes." Zhou Yu nodded. "What did he have to gain from it though?"

"In case Lu Bu didn't eliminate Liu Bei, Shan would have. Shu would have never expected it, and with the boy's attempt on Lu Xi's life….it makes it seem like his target will be Lady Sun's new child."

"Liu Bei will blame himself." Zhou Yu smirked. "Perhaps spend more time with his son to make up for everything. Give the boy a chance to kill his father."

"In Shan's mind, Kongming and Jiang Wei cared more for him than his father." Jin closed the copy of the Art of War. "My brother planned for failure and success. There are so many intertwined strategies….by second-guessing him you can easy step in a trap."

"So we are still rivals then, Kongming." Zhou Yu smiled.

* * *

"It seems like you're always running off after men." Zhao Yun mused.

"I usually am." Cal shrugged, immune to the jesting insult.

"I'll have to come visit. I almost forgot how boring it is without Ma Dai humping everyone, Chao serving justice or you getting into trouble." Zhao Yun toyed with his spear.

"You have Shang's cousin." Cal chuckled. "What's up with her?"

"She's not my type."

"Not as beautiful as a Qiao or Diao Chan, huh?" Cal asked.

"She's always talking about cross-stitch or knitting….I just don't care about what yarn can be made from what." Zhao Yun shrugged. "I like a girl who can fight."

"Really?" Cal asked. "So you just screw the pretty ones and keep your eye open for a battle vixen, huh?"

"Stop teasing me." He hugged her. "I'm having a hard enough time saying goodbye without you making me aware of what I'll be missing."

"I'm worried." She squeezed him. "I'm worried I'll never see you again. I'm worried that even if I do you'll do something gay and cut your hair."

"You bitch." Zilong squeezed her hard. "Hey, stop by and see my parents with me."

"Why? Some sort of punishment?" Cal asked.

"No, I just think they should meet you. You're the only sibling I have."

* * *

Zhou Yu looked over at Sun Shang Xiang. "Your father would be proud of you."

"I hope so. I doubt he'd like that Quannie became a transvestite and is in love with his pirate bodyguard." Shang swung her feet off the pier and sighed. "I'll probably never see you all again."

"Shang I'm not here to say goodbye." Zhou Yu sat down next to her and flattened out his robes. "I don't believe your brother capable of being a good king. He's made several bad decisions and continues to put his officers in unacceptable roles. Cao Cao has retreated because he knows Sun Quan will do something ridiculously stupid and ruin our alliance. I think he's brilliant for doing so."

"Yeah. He goes home, watches us get worn out and walks in to pick up the pieces. Why didn't you think of that?" Shang teased.

"I want you to rule Wu." He said and looked at her to make sure she understood he was genuine. "I have already discussed your brother's inadequacies with your mother. She is not pleased and agreed with me that your father's kingdom is not safe in his hands."

"I won't leave Liu Bei."

"I'm not asking you to. I'm asking you to keep your damned army intact until our countries can be united into one." Zhou Yu sighed. "It won't be easy. You're going home to fight the Nanman with hardly more than a division. Ma Chao is taking his army home to fight an even more powerful enemy. I think all your loyalties will be tested, you must determine what your true duty is." Zhou Yu shook his head. "I don't mean to lecture. I just need you to know that I will serve you as my queen, not Sun Quan."

Shang watched him get up. "Gongjing….are you telling me you're a traitor?"

"I serve Wu and will give my life to see it flourish. I will not let a King destroy it. I am not a traitor."

"What are you going to do?" She asked.

"I don't know." He smiled. It wasn't often that he said that. "Will you help me save your father's kingdom?"

"As long as it won't hurt my husband…."

"I have no intentions of harming your husband." Zhou Yu assured her. _I have no intentions of saving him, either._

* * *

Cao Pi whipped his robe behind him and made sure his wife followed him obediently. He was going to strut past his father, just as his mother had instructed. "Retreating despite the numbers being in your favor? What's wrong, Father, Chibi still giving you nightmares?"

"I liked him better when he was tied up and gagged." Sima Yi grumbled and took another drink of wine. He watched the young Cao's eyes as he provoked his father. He had to wonder what purpose this served.

"You insolent little bastard, I can name your brother as heir just as quickly as I can lop your head off." Cao Cao hissed and threw a soggy meatbun at him.

Zhen Ji sat down and smiled. Two angry Caos was almost more than she could handle. She crossed her legs and squirmed.

"I'm just curious if you're trying to take your kingdom with you when you die or if age is rotting your mind." Cao Pi gracefully took his sword apart and used one blade to launch the meatbun in the air, while the other sliced it in half. "Perhaps you can enlighten me as to what great strategy you were using when you decided this."

Xiahou Dun watched his cousin rub his temples. The headaches were back. It seemed like they were so much more frequent now. He looked to Pi who seemed to find some delight in this. "If we preserve our forces, we will be ready to conquer more than just China when this current war is over."

"Mmm…" Cao Pi whipped his cape around and snapped his fingers to his wife. "Very well. I'll see you in the morning."

* * *

"We're now divided." Sun Shang Xiang said quietly.

"At least I'm not going back to Wei." Cal shrugged. "Unlike someone who is sleeping with the enemy."

"Sleep?" Yue Ying queried. "What's that?"

"Tigress Generals of Shu, you must remember your duty. Our loyalties will be tested." Shang sighed. She sounded like she was echoing Zhou Yu.

"You sound like a queen." Cal chuckled.

"I am going to have to side against my family." She said somberly. "I chose my side."

"I will not waver. Tai knows that. He'll force me to leave before he will allow me to be placed in that situation." Yue Ying boasted.

"Oh…so this is about me?" Cal raised an eyebrow.

"He's not going to want to come back. He's headstrong and he is a Lord of a land bigger than Shu…" Yue Ying began.

"He is no traitor." Cal snapped and stood up. "You're confusing my husbands."

"No, but he's damned near the most stubborn general we have. He wants to whisk you away back home where he can make up for your terrible life and protect you. Only you are going to be able to change his mind." Yue Ying stated simply.

"Don't treat Chao like he's the enemy." Cal growled.

"You are his rational side. Just remember that." Yue Ying apologized.

"Are we done here?" Cal asked "Or since we're on the topic of betrayal, maybe we should talk about Liu Shan?"

Yue Ying gulped. "Shan?"

"Yeah, Zhuge's little minion who tried to give my kid to Wei."

Shang frowned. "I guess you picked up on that huh?"

"Why wouldn't I?" Cal asked. "He was playing at my game."

"He's a child, all we can do is try and undo what Kongming has…"Ying stopped as she watched Cal scowl.

"He's ruined. I can't kill him, he's a damned kid and my Lord's son…as much as I'd like to drop him in the river and fish him out with a harpoon." Cal cracked her knuckles. "So we leave him in your care Shang. Watch him, never relax around him."

"I know." Shang had already wondered what the brat had thought of doing to ensure he stayed Liu Bei's only child.

* * *

"Zilong, is that your army?"

Zhao Yun sighed and looked behind him at the fangirls and shook his head. "No, mom. They're just fangirls."

"You can't find one of them to be your wife? I'd like grandchildren, before I die." Lady Gong smiled and kissed her son when she saw the exasperated look on his face. "Welcome home, son."

Zilong kissed his mom on the cheek and heard the fangirl horde begin to swoon. They only got worse after his naked escapade at the last battle. "Mom, I want you to meet my sworn sister, General Calpurnia Quinerus."

Cal rolled her eyes at the pronunciation of her name. Mrs. Ma Chao sounded better than that. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Lady Gong."

"Are you protecting him from those women?"

"I try. He recently streaked through the enemy camp, so it's difficult to keep them at bay."

Zilong growled and looked at her with a scowl.

"I heard." Lady Gong smiled. "Way to make me proud son."

"Sorry mom."

"Come inside; see your father before those women start foaming at the mouth."

Cal smiled as Lady Gong wrapped her arm around her. "I do try to help him as much as I can; he's just too obsessed with work."

"Well at least I know he's being looked out for."

Cal smirked. "More than you know."

"You're supposed to be on my side, remember?" Zhao Yun snorted and saw his father in the kitchen enjoying tea. "Sir."

"Son! About time you came home to visit, those fangirls keep bothering us. Can't you do anything?"

"Like, get married?" Lady Gong asked and went to refill her husband's tea.

"You brought home a girl!" the elder Zhao exclaimed.

"My fellow general, Calpurnia Quinicirus." Zilong smiled proudly.

"Quinirius, idiot." Cal muttered.

"Mrs. Ma Chao." Zhao Yun grabbed her by the arm and presented her to his father. "We're sworn siblings."

"Oh." He chuckled. "So no one else wanted to be your sworn sibling?"

"Nope." Cal shook her head. "I'm just a stray."

"Cal, stop it. They're nothing wrong with you." Zhao Yun snorted and sat down at the table and looked at the latest graphic novel entailing his adventures.

"Other than I'm a girl, Lu Bu's widow, a murderer, negligent mother, traitor and the minor fact that I'm Roman." Cal sat down beside him. "Nothing much. At least the fangirls think you're so cute and thoughtful for taking me under your wing."

"Can you help him find a wife….or two?" Lady Gong asked. "Zilong's always been so shy with the girls."

"I try." Cal sighed. "Maybe if you convince him he needs to come to Xiliang with me…"

Zhao Yun rolled his eyes. "I have to take care of everything now that you're abandoning us. Why don't you rein in your husband and make him stay in Cheng Du?"

"He'll break things." Cal shrugged. "You tell him, you're his supposed best friend. Grow some balls and stand up to him."

"That's your job." Zilong chuckled when he saw the artist's rendition of him saving Liu Shan at Chang Ban.

"So you're Lord Ma Chao's new wife." Lady Gong smiled. "Does he have a sister?"

"Mom…." Zhao Yun whined.

"Ask your lord to help you." Zhao Deng said simply. "He can arrange something I'm sure."

"Our queen has already taken care of that." Cal smirked. "If you ask me I think she's a nice catch. She's beautiful and is a great homemaker. She's made about three dozen booties in anticipation of being your wife…."

"Shut up."

"What's wrong with that one, son?" Deng sighed, all too familiar with his boy's refusal to wed.

"She's boring, father."

"You're never home anyway." Cal rolled her eyes. "Just knock her up and come home to see the kid, name it and knock her up again. Do I have to tell you everything?"

"Exactly, I'm never home." Zilong stated simply. "It's not fair to put a woman through that."

"Where is home, now?" Deng asked. "You change alliances so much your mother and I have a hard time keeping tract."

"Cheng Du is home." Zilong snapped curtly. "Shu is my one and only alliance until I die."

"Just like the others. Why can't you fight for someone who is going to win?" the elder Zhao asked.

"The others? How many people have you served, Zilong?" Cal asked. Finally there was a weakness in his shining white hero armor!

"First there was Yuan Shao…then Gongshun Zan…then Liu Bei…" Lord Zhao continued

"You slut." Cal chuckled. "You've changed sides as much as me!"

"It's different." Zhao Yun snorted. "They were lords that held promise for leading the people, you just served everyone who wanted to conquer the world."

"What's wrong with winning, son?" Zhao Deng asked.

"Doing what is right is more important!"

"Keeping the country at war….that's hard to see the positive."

"Lord Liu Bei is the only man who should run this country." Zhao Yun stated simply. "Cal, some help please?"

"It's nice to die for something worthwhile, instead of just dying to further someone else's ambitions." Cal smiled summing up his whiney statements.

"So glad you're both so ready to die." Deng huffed. "Take a wife soon then, at least let your mother have some happiness before she has to clean your temple everyday."

"What about your family, Cal?" Lady Gong smiled. "I can call you Cal, yes?"

"Please do." The Roman smiled. She couldn't imagine anyone else being Zilong's parents. "My family…is complicated."

Zhao Yun sighed. "To say the least."

"Well, we have time. We are waiting for grandchildren, so I suppose we have a few centuries to hear your story." Lady Gong smiled.

Cal chuckled and winced as Zilong smacked her for finding humor in his plight. Seeing the expectant look upon his mother's face, she filled the Zhaos in on her background.

* * *

Yue Ying watched the last of the Shu army disappear down the road to the west. "I already miss them."

"I'll make it up to you." Zhou Tai smirked.

"Zhou Yu is being very friendly, why?" She looked to her husband and watched him shrug.

"I'm a bodyguard, not a tactician."

"Why." She repeated.

"You know why or you wouldn't be asking." Tai kissed her as she leaned into him.

"I suppose I'll just have to play along." She rubbed Tai's chest and tugged at his armor. "For now, I think you should console me. I don't want to think about never seeing my friends again. Remind me why I just don't get rid of Sun Quan and claim you for Shu."

"Statements like that will ensure you never get to tie me up again." He led her back to their tent. "I'll just have to keep you occupied so you can't do much damage."

Yue Ying allowed him to turn her around, to the east. Her eyes took in the scenery and she could see for quite a ways on the horizon. East was Wu territory and her new home. She was not only leaving behind her friends and country, but fully immersing herself in a new world. She had enjoyed the time after Kongming died, she had been able to relax. There were no enemies to have to be on guard around, no competitors to constantly outsmart. However she was going to have to deal with Zhou Yu on a daily basis and his small army of strategists. Lu Meng was sweet, obviously misused by his lord, so she actually looked forward to getting to know him better. Lu Xun was a very talented kid who wanted to learn, but she would only cooperate with him so much. There was no point in encouraging the enemy, even though Pang Tong did his part. She knew Shiyuan well; he only did it in order to gain some knowledge of an opponent's arsenal. Now if they ever met in battle, he had a clear vision of what the kid was working with. The one that worried her most was Zhuge Jin. Though not anywhere near the strategist his brother was, the elder Zhuge was quite capable. She was also pretty sure he knew her better than she thought.

* * *

"You're back!" Ma Chao galloped down the road with a huge smile on his face. Soon they would be separating from the main army and heading North, towards Xiliang. His wife had been on a road trip with her sworn brother and he missed her a lot. The pressures of being the Lord of Xiliang were getting heavier and he just needed more than his dismal cousin to support him.

"He is observant isn't he?" Zhao Yun toyed with his new uniform that his mother had made for him. She had received his request to make something a little less revealing so that fangirls wouldn't be so rabid at the sight of his bare biceps. He liked it, it was actually quite fancy. A nice green tunic with dragons embroidered into it and a nice form fitting blue vest to compliment it. For extra fangirl protection his mom had even added another layer, a white and blue sash that buckled over his left shoulder. He didn't want to admit how many times his nipples had been attacked in public, but Cal had chimed in that benefit before he could shut her up. Overall, it was a great trip home and he wished he could have taken everyone with him to meet his family.

"As long as he doesn't see a chance to kill Cao Cao." Cal sighed. He could be so very narrow minded.

"That's why you're his bodyguard."

"You try getting within 10 feet of him when he's swing that spear. I'll be his body servant, let someone suicidal take that bodyguard job."

"We're pretty close to having to split up." Zilong sighed as Chao came to a sliding stop then trotted his mare in circles around them. "Did we miss much?"

"Word's come back that Cheng Du is under attack by the Nanman and all we have to defend the city are Zhang Fei and Guan Yu's kids." Chao leaned over and kissed his wife.

"Can't we just go to Xiliang by way of Cheng Du? I'm sure I recall some roads leading North from the city." Cal watched his expression sour. "We'll still go home! Dammit! Our capital is under attack!"

"Xiliang will be under attack by the time we get there." Chao sighed. "Cao Cao is already dividing his army up to send a force to capture and occupy. The peasants are turning out to be the best spies ever."

"Don't worry." Zilong patted her shoulder. "Just remember how much we did when we were just a few officers instead of an army."

"We need to destroy our enemies not just send them away for a little while!" Cal snapped. "Look at us! We hardly have an army left! It's a war of attrition!"

"What's gotten into you?" Chao asked. This was as bad as dealing with Ma Dai who was less than enthusiastic about returning home.

"I want to win." Cal nudged Ares and he began to walk away from the two warriors. "Not just die for a cause. I want to win."

"What the hell was that about?" Chao asked Zilong.

"My dad." The mighty warrior sighed. "He just has that effect on people."

"Oh." Chao watched his wife ride away, determined on spending every last minute with the people she cared for before he took her away with him. "We will win, we have to."

"Sure." Zilong nodded. "Let's just go enjoy ourselves for now, huh?"

"There aren't any Qiaos, dancer rapists or leper whores in camp right now. Are you sure you can enjoy yourself?" Chao chuckled and kicked his horse into a gallop to catch up with his wife.

"I'm going to miss you two very much." Zhao Yun sighed and let Tsunami walk on.

* * *

Liu Bei left Sun Shang Xiang and Pang Tong to talk strategy; she seemed to be more invested in ruling Shu now than ever. He was happy for the relief; this war was wearing him down. He didn't understand how men like Cao Cao and Shu Jian thrived on it. Maybe he wasn't meant to be a King after all.

"What's wrong brother?" Guan Yu looked up at his lord as he slumped down next to him at the campfire.

"Better not be any more of that 'I'm not a good king' bullshit." Zhang Fei grumbled and handed his bottle of musou wine to Bei.

"How can you both support me? Your children are back in Cheng Du fighting alone. I've left you to fight on your own so many times, Yu. How…."

"Quit your bitching already." Fei shoved him off the log. "If I wanted to listen to this whining I'd have brought my wife along."

"You keep us humble thou." Guan Yu mused. "Without you, I think we might actually enjoy this war."

"You two are not helping." Bei adjusted himself and got back up on the log.

"The way I look at it…" Yu smiled. "You're not really running the country anymore anyway."

"Yeah. What's up with that? What the hell got into Shang? Well other than you…"

"Uh…" Bei felt his cheeks begin to flush. "She wants to take Wu from her brother."

"Good idea." Fei nodded.

"I'll go to Cheng Du to assist and you and the army can turn around and have another food fight with Wu." Yu bit into a meatbun.

"What's going on now?" Zhao Yun was reluctant to approach. He always felt like the outsider when the three brothers were together.

"I'm going to Cheng Du." Guan Yu stated. "Alone."

"What?" Liu Bei realized this had all turned serious in a few seconds.

"Pang Tong asked me already. I agree, it makes sense. I'll ride ahead and support our kids and take command. We cannot lose the city, this fragile army must be allowed to refit and be protected while doing so." Guan Yu then added. "I'll take Red Hare and be there in a few days."

"So you volunteered so you can play with a horse." Fei chuckled. "Nice."

"Cal gave him to me." Yu smiled.

"Does Ma Chao know that?" Zilong asked.

* * *

"You gave him away?!" Chao stammered.

"He's a warhorse. He deserves to be someone's _only_ warhorse." She pet Red Hare and then added. "Besides, he's mine not yours."

"But…"

"I'm sure you can breed whatever mares you want to him, but he needs a job." Cal scratched the stallion and gave him a treat. "Besides, they are a good match."

"I guess." Chao sighed and chose not to pursue it any further. Sure he wasn't going to give up Lotus, but a cavalry commander could use a horse like Red Hare. He was unstoppable. Chao looked up as Guan Yu arrived with his tack. "Going somewhere so soon?"

"Cheng Du." The giant replied.

"Oh." So it really was an emergency. Chao nodded. "Good luck."

"I'll need more help with my kids than the Nanman." Guan Yu tried to be upbeat; he had to keep everyone's morale up.

"Easy for you to say…you don't have to deal with Xing Cai flirting with you every second you're near her." Guan Ping trudged up with his tack and dropped it beside his father. "Uh…by the way I'm coming with you."

"How do you intend to keep up?" Yu looked at his son and watched him brush down his own horse.

"I don't." Ping admitted. "But you'll need reinforcements. It will be a surprise…two days after you get there."

"You've already made your last stand…twice." Chao remembered. "I suppose you're a good team."

"Alright." Yu stroked his beard. "Only because I think you'll get in trouble here if I leave you in Zhang Fei's care."

* * *

Pang Tong yawned and stretched as a concubine cuddled closer and kissed his nipple. Morning was here and it was time to play master strategist again. He rolled out from underneath the girl and dressed. Guan Yu was already gone and Guan Ping was probably already 50 miles behind him. Now Cheng Du would not be as much of a concern.

Today however, the Ma Clan would take the road north and leave them. He knew that would be more of a morale hit than anything. Zilong was already moping around and Liu Bei never was good at hiding his emotions. Sun Shang Xiang was investing all her energy in planning to make Shu an Empire that her father would be proud of and he liked it. She barked orders and played the part well, which helped take some of the attention away from Liu Bei.

He finished dressing and grabbed his staff before leaving the tent. He donned his hat before opening his eyes in order to shield himself from the sun. He wasn't quite prepared for what he saw.

"I said get those tents down and packed, NOW!" Zhang Fei bellowed and emphasized his point by slicing a dog tent in half with his spear. "We have to support my brother and I'll be damned if I let some stupid tents slow us down! If you value it, pack it quick!"

"I was wondering who would take command." Pang Tong chuckled and made his way to the breakfast table. His lord was weary-eyed and quiet. His Queen nowhere to be found.

"I sent him off before and he was almost killed."

"That's why _I_ sent him." Pang Tong sat down and rested his staff on the table. "Don't worry, Guan Yu is a big boy. Though, on second thought, I should have sent Shang's cousin with him. She could have distracted Meng Huo."

"Now I'm letting Ma Chao go too…"

"Look boss, we're at war. You have to stop getting clingy." Tong began to shovel eggs in his mouth. "He did pretty good against Cao Cao before we had him on our side. All he needs to do is take that damned gate back and keep it. I'll talk with Cal before they leave and give her an idea of what she has to get him to do. Just do me a favor and play fetch with Zilong, he's getting depressed. I can't handle everyone's separation anxiety."

"Tong…"

"Xuande, I do have a plan. Just because I'm not an arrogant ass who makes everyone endure my self-glorifying lectures, doesn't mean I'm not working. I'll let you in on a little secret."

"Oh?"

"When I went to get Cal's little crazy horse, I stopped off to visit Cao Cao's harem. I switched out their herbal remedy with a fertility treatment. When he gets home, every one of his whores will be impregnated. Quite possibly by me…."

Liu Bei had to smile. In fact, he had to start laughing.

* * *

A/N: This story is becoming more difficult for me to write with each new DW game. I can't promise this will ever end, but I will try to at least finish up the chapters I have written.


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